constitutionally

adverb

con·​sti·​tu·​tion·​al·​ly ˌkän(t)-stə-ˈtü-shnə-lē 

-ˈtyü-,

-shə-nə-lē

1

a

: in accordance with one's constitution

constitutionally unable to grasp subtleties

b

: in structure, composition, or constitution

despite repeated heatings the material remained constitutionally the same

2

: in accordance with a political constitution

was not constitutionally eligible to fill the office

Synonyms

• congenitally
• inherently
• innately
• intrinsically
• naturally

Example Sentences

I'm afraid that I'm constitutionally incapable of carrying a tune.

Recent Examples on the Web

Enter Email Sign Up Yet the court emphasized that even if a defendant believes they were discriminated against, a criminal case will be allowed to continue if law enforcement can show their actions were based on constitutionally acceptable procedures. —John R. Ellement, BostonGlobe.com, 15 May 2023

Two of the universities, the State University of Campinas and the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, are public, even though Brazil, like the United States, is a constitutionally secular state. —Heslley Machado Silva, Scientific American, 12 May 2023

But Fox, a constitutionally speedy person, also speaks of learning how to be still within his life, to slow down, look around. —Robert Lloyd, Los Angeles Times, 11 May 2023

While the move would be politically fraught and constitutionally debatable, Biden could try to sidestep negotiations with Congress entirely to raise the debt limit via the 14th Amendment. —Zachary Halaschak, Washington Examiner, 9 May 2023

Under current commission rules, any candidate who is polling at 15 percent nationally, appears on enough ballots to win 270 electoral votes and is constitutionally eligible for the job receives an invitation to participate. —Josh Dawsey, Washington Post, 2 May 2023

Redrawing the state’s political map is constitutionally required to take place every 10 years after the release of U.S. Census data, so that population changes are accurately reflected in new boundaries for 40 state House districts and 20 Senate districts. —Sean Maguire, Anchorage Daily News, 22 Apr. 2023

Fox also claimed that the broadcasts are constitutionally protected. —Melissa Quinn, Clare Hymes, CBS News, 18 Apr. 2023

More significantly, though, writing a constitution that does more than simply consecrate the current situation will still mean making the choice that confronted the state’s founding generation: between a genuinely democratic state and one that constitutionally upholds Jewish supremacy. —Joshua Leifer, The New York Review of Books, 13 Apr. 2023

See More

Word History

First Known Use

1742, in the meaning defined at sense 1a