transitional

adjective

tran·​si·​tion·​al tran(t)-ˈsi-sh(ə-)nəl 

tran(t)-ˈsi-zh(ə-)nəl, 

tran-ˈzi-sh(ə-)nəl 

: marked by transition : involving, providing, or consisting of a passage, movement, or change from one state, condition, subject, place, etc., to another

a transitional passage in music

They are often transitional areas between water environments and dry land, and are populated by many trees and plants that can put up with the occasional flood …

—JoAnn Shroyer

The social worlds of neighborhood and village are now less important as transitional zones between home and nonhome settings.

—Theano S. Terkenli

… turning into a civilian coup, that … established a transitional government and prepared the way for multi-party elections.

—Larry Diamond

… an animal about the size of a turkey that they contend was a flightless bird, a transitional figure between some carnivorous dinosaurs and modern birds.

—John Noble Wilford

transitionally adverb

The problem then is to structure a sequence of reforms that is politically consistent with the social mores of the Soviet Union, economically coherent, and transitionally sound …

—Edgar L. Feige

Examples of transitional in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Devin Harris Harris brought speed and scoring the Nets badly needed during a transitional stretch, stepping in as a lead guard who could pressure defenses and create his own offense. —C.j. Holmes, New York Daily News, 5 Jan. 2026

Nest boxes provide transitional nesting areas as habitat is better managed and restored, while also creating opportunities for research essential to recovery. —Joe Murphy, Sun Sentinel, 4 Jan. 2026

This collar is absolutely huge, but the rest of the look is basic—and works for transitional weather. —Katherine J Igoe, InStyle, 4 Jan. 2026

The shift reflects the team’s goals since the summer — using this season as a transitional period to offload contracts and reset the books to take another crack at roster construction in the summer 2026. —Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 2 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1819, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for transitional

• additional
• conditional
• nutritional
• positional
• traditional
• volitional
• compositional
• definitional
• depositional
• dispositional
• intuitional
• nontraditional

Medical Definition

transitional

adjective

tran·​si·​tion·​al

-ˈish-nəl, -ˈizh-ən-ᵊl

1

: of, relating to, or characterized by transition

2

: of, relating to, or being epithelium (as in the urinary bladder) that consists of several layers of soft cuboidal cells which become flattened when stretched (as when the bladder is distended)