convention

noun

con·ven·tion | \ kən-ˈven(t)-shən

Definition of convention

1a : agreement, contract

b : an agreement between states for regulation of matters affecting all of them an international convention banning the spread of nuclear weapons

c : a compact between opposing commanders especially concerning prisoner exchange or armistice

d : a general agreement about basic principles or procedures also : a principle or procedure accepted as true or correct by convention the conventions of grammar

2a : the summoning or convening of an assembly

b : an assembly of persons met for a common purpose a comic book convention especially : a meeting of the delegates of a political party for the purpose of formulating a platform and selecting candidates for office

c : the usually state or national organization of a religious denomination

3a : usage or custom especially in social matters conventions of society

b : a rule of conduct or behavior

c : a practice in bidding or playing that conveys information between partners in a card game (such as bridge)

d : an established technique, practice, or device (as in the theater) The usual romantic conventions made the film predictable.

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Examples of convention in a Sentence

We go to the weeklong annual teachers' convention every summer. He bought some new books at the science fiction convention. The Democratic National Convention will meet next week to announce their party's candidate for president. It's important to follow the conventions of punctuation in a paper for school. They say school is just as important for teaching children social codes and conventions as for teaching math. Many sports shows have recently adopted the conventions of the talk show. a poet who rebels against literary convention The award that by convention should have gone to the student with the highest grade went instead to the teacher's favorite. As a matter of convention, the oldest members speak first. The director's use of the usual romantic conventions made the film boring and predictable.

Recent Examples on the Web

Immelt only had a month before the Electric Products Group conference, a sort of national convention for the industrial fraternity. — Thomas Gryta And Ted Mann, WSJ, "GE Powered the American Century—Then It Burned Out," 14 Dec. 2018 But why is email spared of these strange conventions? — Ashley Carman, The Verge, "The way we text says a lot about our personality," 7 Nov. 2018 This time last year came the announcement of a new comic convention in Houston. — Andrew Dansby, Houston Chronicle, "'Walking Dead' stars to return for Houston's Fandemic," 3 July 2018 Square Egg Entertainment, the organizers of the annual four-day pop-culture convention in downtown Phoenix, announced the change Sunday. — Lita Nadebah Beck, azcentral, "Phoenix Comic Fest changes name to Phoenix Fan Fusion," 27 May 2018 The Democratic Party has picked Milwaukee to hold its 2020 national convention, choosing to nominate its challenger to President Trump in the battleground state of Wisconsin. — Ken Thomas, WSJ, "Democrats Choose Milwaukee for 2020 National Convention," 11 Mar. 2019 The news followed an announcement by E3 that its 2019 convention would happen in the range of June 11-13 at the Los Angeles Convention Center—and quotes from corporate leaders at Nintendo and Microsoft. — Sam Machkovech, Ars Technica, "Sony is skipping E3 2019," 15 Nov. 2018 De Leon blocked Feinstein from receiving the California Democratic Party's endorsement at its annual convention in February, a window into her troubles with some of the activist base. — Samuel Chamberlain, Fox News, "California Sen. Feinstein drops death penalty support amid primary challenge," 2 Oct. 2018 On Friday, conservative Houston-area Rep. Briscoe Cain pranked Democrats at their own convention. — Andrea Zelinski, Houston Chronicle, "Republicans prank, troll Democrats at state convention," 23 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'convention.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Dictionary Entries near convention

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Last Updated

19 Apr 2019

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Time Traveler for convention

The first known use of convention was in the 15th century

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More Definitions for convention

convention

noun

English Language Learners Definition of convention

: a large meeting of people who come to a place for usually several days to talk about their shared work or other interests or to make decisions as a group

: a custom or a way of acting or doing things that is widely accepted and followed

: a traditional or common style often used in literature, theater, or art to create a particular effect

See the full definition for convention in the English Language Learners Dictionary

convention

noun

con·ven·tion | \ kən-ˈven-chən

Kids Definition of convention

1 : a meeting of people for a common purpose a teachers' convention

2 : a custom or a way of acting and doing things that is widely accepted and followed Follow the conventions of punctuation in your writing.

3 : agreement sense 3 a convention among nations

convention

noun

con·ven·tion

Legal Definition of convention

1 : an agreement between nations for regulation of matters affecting all of them

2 : an agreement enforceable in law : contract

3 : an assembly of persons met for a common purpose especially : a meeting of the delegates of a political party for the purpose of formulating a platform and selecting candidates for office