unconstitutional

Etymology

It is formed from English un- + constitutional, with the negative prefix.^[2][3][4][5] constitutional is from constitution,^[2][3] borrowed from Old French constitucion and Latin cōnstitūtiō, from cōnstituō (“to set up, establish”).^[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

Not in harmony with, or not authorized by, the political constitution of a state: 1734, in the Country Journal of 16 November.^[2][3][6]

Semantic evolution

The word is older in the record than the political sense of its base: Etymonline dates constitutional in the sense "authorized by the political constitution" only from 1765, the earlier sense being "relating to a person's constitution".^[3] From 1794, in Godwin's Caleb Williams, unconstitutional was also used of something not in keeping with a person's constitution or nature.^[2] Merriam-Webster notes the specific American use, contrary to the Constitution of the United States,^[6] and Black's Law Dictionary defines it as in conflict with a constitution, especially that of the United States.^[7]

Timeline

• 1734 – contrary to the constitution of a state.^[2][3][6]
• 1791 – unconstitutionalism and unconstitutionally.^[8]
• 1794 – not in keeping with a person's constitution.^[2]

Meanings

Adjective

1. Not consistent with, or not permitted by, the constitution of a state or organization; especially, contrary to the Constitution of the United States: The court struck the ordinance down as unconstitutional.^[9][6][2][7]

Word family

• unconstitutionality
• unconstitutionally
• unconstitutionalism

Related words

• anticonstitutional
• constitutional
• constitution

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b c d e f Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
5. ^ Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
6. ^ a b c d Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
7. ^ a b Garner, Bryan A., ed. (2004), Black's Law Dictionary, 8th ed., St. Paul, Minn.: Thomson West
8. ^ Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
9. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins