Standard Lemma guide

functionalism

noun · 8 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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  • /ˈfʌŋkʃənəlɪzəm/
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.

1

noun

Meaning 1

A doctrine, in several fields, that the function of something should be reflected in its design and the materials used in its construction.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Topics: architecture

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

The definition of mental states in terms of their causes and effects.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Topics: human-sciences, philosophy, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

The idea that social and cultural cohesion are a function of the interdependence and interactions of the institutions of a society.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Topics: human-sciences, sciences, social-science, social-sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

noun

Meaning 4

The theory that the Holocaust was the result of a gradual escalation of decisions and procedures at the operational level (approved but not necessarily preconceived by Hitler).

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Topics: history, human-sciences, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

noun

Meaning 5

A general school of thought that considers psychological phenomena in terms of their role in adaptation to the person's environment.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Topics: human-sciences, psychology, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

6

noun

Meaning 6

Synonym of functional linguistics.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Topics: human-sciences, linguistics, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: functional linguistics

Antonyms: none provided

7

noun

Meaning 7

any doctrine that stresses utility or purpose

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: doctrine, philosophy, philosophical system, school of thought, ism

8

noun

Meaning 8

a psychology based on the assumption that all mental process are useful to an organism in adapting to the environment

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: scientific theory

History

Etymology

Etymology tree Old French fonction Middle French functionbor. English function English -al English functional Proto-Indo-European *-id- Proto-Indo-European *-yéti Proto-Indo-European *-idyéti Proto-Hellenic *-íďďō Ancient Greek -ῐ́ζω (-ĭ́zō) Proto-Indo-European *-mos Proto-Indo-European *-mós Ancient Greek -μός (-mós) Ancient Greek -ισμός (-ismós)der. English -ism English functionalism From functional + -ism.

Across languages

Translations

45 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Catalan: funcionalisme — architecture
  • Chinese Mandarin: 功能主義 /功能主义 (gōngnéngzhǔyì) — architecture
  • Czech: funkcionalismus — architecture
  • Finnish: funktionalismi — architecture
  • Finnish: funkis — architecture
  • French: fonctionnalisme — architecture
  • German: Funktionalismus — architecture
  • Italian: funzionalismo — architecture
  • Japanese: 機能主義 (kinōshugi) — architecture
  • Kazakh: функционализм (funksionalizm) — architecture
  • Malay: fungsionalisme — architecture
  • Norwegian Bokmål: funksjonalisme — architecture
  • Norwegian Nynorsk: funksjonalisme — architecture
  • Polish: funkcjonalizm — architecture
  • Portuguese: funiconalismo — architecture
  • Spanish: funcionalismo — architecture
  • Swedish: funktionalism — architecture
  • Swedish: funkis — architecture
  • Turkish: fonksiyonalizm — architecture
  • Catalan: funcionalisme — philosophy
  • Chinese Mandarin: 功能主義 /功能主义 (gōngnéngzhǔyì) — philosophy
  • Finnish: funktionalismi — philosophy
  • French: fonctionnalisme — philosophy
  • German: Funktionalismus — philosophy
  • Italian: funzionalismo — philosophy
  • Japanese: 機能主義 (kinōshugi) — philosophy
  • Kazakh: функционализм (funksionalizm) — philosophy
  • Polish: funkcjonalizm — philosophy
  • Portuguese: funcionalismo — philosophy
  • Spanish: funcionalismo — philosophy
  • Chinese Mandarin: 功能主義 /功能主义 (gōngnéngzhǔyì) — social science
  • Finnish: funktionalismi — social science
  • German: Funktionalismus — social science
  • Japanese: 機能主義 (kinōshugi) — social science
  • Kazakh: функционализм (funksionalizm) — social science
  • Polish: funkcjonalizm — social science
  • Spanish: funcionalismo — social science
  • Chinese Mandarin: 功能主義 /功能主义 (gōngnéngzhǔyì) — psychology
  • Finnish: funktionalismi — psychology
  • German: Funktionalismus — psychology
  • Japanese: 機能主義 (kinōshugi) — psychology
  • Kazakh: функционализм (funksionalizm) — psychology
  • Malay: fungsionalisme — psychology
  • Polish: funkcjonalizm — psychology
  • Spanish: funcionalismo — psychology
Real reading context

functionalism in complete knowledge articles