CONVENTION

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does convention mean? 

• CONVENTION (noun)
  The noun CONVENTION has 5 senses:

1. a large formal assembly

2. something regarded as a normative example

3. (diplomacy) an international agreement

4. orthodoxy as a consequence of being conventional

5. the act of convening

  Familiarity information: CONVENTION used as a noun is common.

 Dictionary entry details 

• CONVENTION (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A large formal assembly

Classified under:

Nouns denoting groupings of people or objects

Context example:

political convention

Hypernyms ("convention" is a kind of...):

group meeting; meeting (a formally arranged gathering)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "convention"):

Constitutional Convention (the convention of United States statesmen who drafted the United States Constitution in 1787)

Derivation:

conventioneer (someone who attends a convention)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Something regarded as a normative example

Classified under:

Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents

Synonyms:

convention; formula; normal; pattern; rule

Context example:

his formula for impressing visitors

Hypernyms ("convention" is a kind of...):

practice (knowledge of how something is usually done)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "convention"):

mores ((sociology) the conventions that embody the fundamental values of a group)

code of behavior; code of conduct (a set of conventional principles and expectations that are considered binding on any person who is a member of a particular group)

universal (a behavioral convention or pattern characteristic of all members of a particular culture or of all human beings)

Sense 3

Meaning:

(diplomacy) an international agreement

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Hypernyms ("convention" is a kind of...):

accord; pact; treaty (a written agreement between two states or sovereigns)

Domain category:

diplomacy; diplomatic negotiations (negotiation between nations)

Instance hyponyms:

Chemical Weapons Convention (a global treaty banning the production or acquisition or stockpiling or transfer or use of chemical weapons)

Geneva Convention (an agreement first drawn up in Geneva in 1864 and later revised concerning the treatment of captured and wounded military personnel and civilians in wartime)

Sense 4

Meaning:

Orthodoxy as a consequence of being conventional

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Synonyms:

convention; conventionalism; conventionality

Hypernyms ("convention" is a kind of...):

orthodoxy (the quality of being orthodox (especially in religion))

Attribute:

conventional (following accepted customs and proprieties)

unconventional (not conforming to accepted rules or standards)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "convention"):

conformity; ossification (hardened conventionality)

Sense 5

Meaning:

The act of convening

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

convening; convention

Hypernyms ("convention" is a kind of...):

assemblage; assembly; gathering (the social act of assembling)

Derivation:

convene (call together)

convene (meet formally)

 Context examples 

It is a real enough convention.

(Martin Eden, by Jack London)

I know, my dear Watson, that you share my love of all that is bizarre and outside the conventions and humdrum routine of everyday life.

(The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

The specific representation of a date will depend on which calendar convention is in force as well as local ordering conventions.

(Date Data Type, NCI Thesaurus)

They have, for example, their insular conventions which simply must be observed.

(His Last Bow, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

A statement that defines conventions, guidelines, characteristics or methods for consistent data handling to facilitate exchange or processing of the data.

(Data Standard, NCI Thesaurus)

Categories into which numbers are apportioned by the conventions of algebraic number theory.

(Number Type, NCI Thesaurus)

A convention for categorizing the physiological properties of a fatty acid by indicating the location of its double bond as counted from the terminal methyl carbon (designated as x or omega) (e.g., omega-6 fatty acid).

(n-x Nomenclature, NCI Thesaurus)

A convention for representing the molecular structure of fatty acids where each double bond is represented by the symbol delta with an exponent of x that indicates the xth carbon-carbon bond as counted from the carboxylic end.

(delta-x Nomenclature, NCI Thesaurus)

It’s also possible you will attend a beautiful social event, like a wedding or birthday party, or one that’s work-related, such as a trade show, conference, or convention during the week of the full moon, March 9, plus or minus four days.

(AstrologyZone.com, by Susan Miller)

The base units are a choice of seven well-defined units within the International System of Units (Systeme International d'Unites, SI), which by convention are regarded as dimensionally independent and therefore defined in an absolute way without referring to any other units: the meter, the kilogram, the second, the ampere, the kelvin, the mole, and the candela.

(Base Unit of International System of Units, NCI Thesaurus)