transition

noun

tran·si·tion | \ tran(t)-ˈsi-shən

, tran-ˈzi-, chiefly British tran(t)-ˈsi-zhən\

Definition of transition

(Entry 1 of 2)

1a : passage from one state, stage, subject, or place to another : change

b : a movement, development, or evolution from one form, stage, or style to another

2a : a musical modulation

b : a musical passage leading from one section of a piece to another

3 : an abrupt change in energy state or level (as of an atomic nucleus or a molecule) usually accompanied by loss or gain of a single quantum of energy

transition

verb

transitioned; transitioning; transitions

Definition of transition (Entry 2 of 2)

intransitive verb

: to make a transition transition into college

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Other Words from transition

Noun

transitional \ tran(t)-ˈsish-nəl

, -ˈsizh- , -ˈzish- ; -ˈsi-shə-nᵊl , -ˈzi- , -zhə- \ adjective

transitionally adverb

Examples of transition in a Sentence

Noun

We want to have a smooth transition when the new owners take control of the company. the sometimes difficult transition from childhood to adulthood The country made a peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy.

Verb

The company has transitioned to new management in the past year. a student who is transitioning to a new school

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

Ward recounts a specific incident during the transition when Ivanka had earmarked an office for herself in the East Wing, the traditional domain of the first lady. — Emma Dibdin, Town & Country, "Does Ivanka Trump Really Want to Be President Someday?," 19 Mar. 2019 There have been claims that the bank VTB was involved in the Trump Tower Moscow talks, and the chair of a different bank, VEB, met with Jared Kushner during the transition. — Andrew Prokop, Vox, "The mysterious grand jury appeal that may be tied to the Mueller investigation, explained," 19 Dec. 2018 Hardware has been relegated to second fiddle, which marks a sea change for a tech giant in transition and watershed moment for Apple events, which had generally made phones and laptops and watches the stars of the show. — Eric Limer, Popular Mechanics, "For Apple's Big Event on Monday, Hardware Is Just a Sideshow," 21 Mar. 2019 If nothing else, the transition to the 9th-gen mobile chips will help put to rest the confusion associated with the 8th-gen Core, which included multiple iterations of Coffee Lake and Kaby Lake chips. — Mark Hachman, PCWorld, "Intel promises 9th-gen mobile Core processors will arrive 'very, very soon'," 20 Mar. 2019 Hold for a moment and then transition to the high plank position again. — Jenny Mccoy, SELF, "A Total-Body HIIT Workout You Can Do in Under 15 Minutes From Celebrity Trainer Jeanette Jenkins," 14 Mar. 2019 Pritzker noted there are payroll tax credits in the law to ease the transition for employers. — John O'connor, The Seattle Times, "Governor signs measure to hike Illinois minimum wage to $15," 19 Feb. 2019 Fond Farewell As a child approaches 2, NFP nurses start winding down their home visits, helping the moms find affordable child care and transition into life after the program. — Tracy Saelinger, Woman's Day, "This Nurse Helps New Moms When They're Most Vulnerable," 8 Jan. 2019 Clearly, this will be a major transition for the duke and duchess, but a source tells BAZAAR.com that Kensington Palace has known about Pickerill's decision to leave for several months, so her departure isn't a shock. — Amy Mackelden, Harper's BAZAAR, "Meghan Markle's Assistant Private Secretary Amy Pickerill Has Quit," 9 Mar. 2019

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

While emerging-tech job roles still represent a relatively small share of total tech job postings—about 10%—that figure is growing rapidly due to employers transitioning from pilot projects to full production deployments of new technologies. — Angus Loten, WSJ, "Tech Hiring a Bright Spot Amid Weaker Job Growth," 8 Mar. 2019 Panthers may have found that in Donte Jackson To be decided in camp Gaulden's usefulness to the Panthers is reliant on his ability to seamlessly transition from position to position in the defensive backfield. — Jourdan Rodrigue, charlotteobserver, "Most exciting position battle at Panthers' 2018 training camp fueled by competition," 11 July 2018 Houston officials have expressed concern that FEMA has not qualified enough storm victims for the short-term housing programs that exist partly to help people transition out of hotels. — Mike Morris, Houston Chronicle, "More than 300 days later, FEMA-funded hotel rooms end for Harvey victims," 1 July 2018 Images on the church monitors transitioned from one family memory to another, from one moment in Conrad's life to another. — Brenna Bailey, azcentral, "Fallen Chandler soldier, Sgt. Alexander Conrad, was a 'hero,' brother says," 30 June 2018 Many face difficulties transitioning from the military to civilian life. — Meg Jones, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "UW-Milwaukee receives $1 million for military and veterans mental health research and programming," 22 June 2018 The Warriors, a team built on the three-point shot, beat the Cavs with a thousand cuts, transitioning from the bottom five in attempts at the rim to terrorizing Cleveland with dunks and layups. — Rob Mahoney, SI.com, "Death by a Thousand Cuts: How Golden State Terrorized Cleveland at the Rim," 7 June 2018 Nine units would be reserved for families transitioning from homelessness and be paired with additional on-site services, the city said. — Elliot Njus, OregonLive.com, "Portland to buy new apartment building using housing bond funds," 5 June 2018 In California and Texas, courts are dealing with lawsuits over the refusal of hospitals, citing religious beliefs, to perform hysterectomies on people transitioning from female to male. — Mark Sherman, Fox News, "Baker decision not Supreme Court's last word on LGBT rights," 4 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'transition.' 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 transition

transitional epithelium

Statistics for transition

Last Updated

12 Apr 2019

Look-up Popularity

Time Traveler for transition

The first known use of transition was in 1551

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More Definitions for transition

transition

noun

English Language Learners Definition of transition

(Entry 1 of 2)

: a change from one state or condition to another

transition

verb

English Language Learners Definition of transition (Entry 2 of 2)

chiefly US : to make a change from one state, place, or condition to another : to make a transition

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

transition

noun

tran·si·tion | \ tran-ˈsi-shən

, -ˈzi-\

Kids Definition of transition

: an act or the process of passing from one state, stage, place, or subject to another : change

transition

noun

tran·si·tion | \ tran(t)s-ˈish-ən, tranz-, chiefly British tran(t)s-ˈizh-\

Medical Definition of transition

1 : passage from one state or stage to another especially : an abrupt change in energy state or level (as of an atomic nucleus or a molecule) usually accompanied by loss or gain of a single quantum of energy

2 : a genetic mutation in RNA or DNA that results from the substitution of one purine base for the other or of one pyrimidine base for the other