processual
|pro-ces-su-al|
🇺🇸
/prəˈsɛsjuəl/
🇬🇧
/prəˈsɛsjuːəl/
relating to a process
Etymology
'processual' originates from Latin, specifically the word 'processus', where 'pro-' meant 'forward' and 'cedere' (root seen in 'cess-') meant 'to go'. The English adjective was formed by adding the suffix '-ual' to 'process'.
'processual' developed in Modern English from the noun 'process', which came into English via Middle English 'proces' (from Old French 'proces') and from Latin 'processus'; the adjective was created by combining 'process' + '-ual' to form 'processual'.
Initially, the root ('processus') referred to 'a going forward' or a course of action; over time the English derivative came to mean 'relating to a process' or 'relating to procedure', the current primary senses.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Adjective 1
relating to or characteristic of a process or processes; concerned with the way something happens or is carried out.
The report focused on processual changes rather than isolated events.
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Adjective 2
relating specifically to legal or formal procedures (procedural).
The debate concerned processual issues—how the case should proceed—rather than substantive law.
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Adjective 3
pertaining to Processualism (an approach emphasizing processes), as in processual archaeology or other theoretical frameworks.
Processual archaeology is a processual approach that stresses scientific methods and systems.
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Last updated: 2026/01/13 20:45