positional

adjective po·si·tion·al \ pə-ˈzi-sh(ə-)nəl \

Updated on: 15 Apr 2018

Definition of positional

1 : of, relating to, or fixed by position

positional astronomy

2 : involving little movement

positional warfare

3 : dependent on position or environment or context

the front-articulated \k\ in \kē\ key and the back-articulated \k\ in \kül\ cool are positional variants

—

positionally

adverb

See positional defined for English-language learners

Recent Examples of positional from the Web

Today’s game is Keymer’s sixth-round victory over the Italian IM Alessio Valsecchi, in which the teen showed very good positional sense and a sharp tactical eye to win an exchange and then the game.

— chris chase, BostonGlobe.com, "Chess notes," 8 Apr. 2018
In a positional unit where reps are extra important to building efficiency, a center sitting out practices is a challenge.

— tom krasovic, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Prior NFL team of Chargers' $10M newcomer had hip-related concerns," 5 Apr. 2018
That’s good positional size and young enough that his best NBA seasons should be ahead of him.

— rick bonnell, charlotteobserver, "Your Charlotte Hornets questions: Big changes this summer or in a year?," 3 Apr. 2018
Williams Honored UConn senior Gabby Williams was named the Cheryl Miller small forward of the year by the WBCA, which announced its national positional awards Friday.

— mike anthony, courant.com, "UConn's 19th Final Four, 11th In A Row Give Auriemma Unique Perspective, Memories," 31 Mar. 2018
But Lovullo said Marte brings more to the club than just on-field performance and positional versatility.

— richard morin, azcentral, "How Ketel Marte's contract extension with Arizona Diamondbacks came to be," 27 Mar. 2018
Jesús Aguilar, 1B Popular, affable slugger is talented, but lack of positional versatility hurts in NL. 25.

— todd rosiak, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Our 1-25 ranking of the 2018 Milwaukee Brewers roster," 27 Mar. 2018
After practically every other positional group lost depth, the outside linebackers were almost untouched outside of Anfernee Jennings' injury.

— michael casagrande, AL.com, "Why Alabama pass rush should look different, better in 2018," 22 Mar. 2018
After Batygin and Brown’s announcement a team at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, led by the physicist William Folkner, searched for such anomalies amid the positional data Cassini beamed back during its mission, but found none.

— lee billings, Scientific American, "Looking for Planet Nine, Astronomers Gaze into the Abyss," 22 Mar. 2018

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

First Known Use of positional

circa 1560

POSITIONAL Defined for English Language Learners

positional

adjective

Definition of positional for English Language Learners

: relating to the position of someone or something

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positional

Definition of positional

positionally

Recent Examples of positional from the Web

First Known Use of positional

POSITIONAL Defined for English Language Learners

positional

Definition of positional for English Language Learners

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Definition of positional

positionally

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positional

Definition of positional for English Language Learners

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