formaive.html - adj. & n.
--adj.

1 used or done or held in accordance with rules, convention, or ceremony (formal dress; a formal occasion).
2 ceremonial; required by convention (a formal call).
3 precise or symmetrical (a formal garden).
4 prim or stiff in manner.
5 perfunctory, having the form without the spirit.
6 valid or correctly so called because of its form; explicit and definite (a formal agreement).
7 in accordance with recognized forms or rules.
8 of or concerned with (outward) form or appearance, esp. as distinct from content or matter.
9 Logic concerned with the form and not the matter of reasoning.
10 Philos. of the essence of a thing; essential not material.

--n.

US 1 evening dress.
2 an occasion on which evening dress is worn.

formally adv. formalness n. [ME f. L formalis (as FORM)]

formaive.html - n.
a colourless pungent gas used as a disinfectant and preservative and in the manufacture of synthetic resins.

Chem. formula: CH[2]O. Also called METHANAL. [FORMIC (ACID) + ALDEHYDE]

formaive.html - n.
a colourless solution of formaldehyde in water used as a preservative for biological specimens etc.

formaive.html - n.
1 a excessive adherence to prescribed forms. b the use of forms without regard to inner significance.
2 derog. an artist's concentration on form at the expense of content.
3 the treatment of mathematics as a manipulation of meaningless symbols.
4 Theatr. a symbolic and stylized manner of production.
5 Physics & Math. the mathematical description of a physical situation etc.

formalist n. formalistic adj.

formaive.html - n.
(pl. -ies)
1 a a formal or ceremonial act, requirement of etiquette, regulation, or custom (often with an implied lack of real significance). b a thing done simply to comply with a rule.
2 the rigid observance of rules or convention.
3 ceremony; elaborate procedure.
4 being formal; precision of manners.
5 stiffness of design. [F formalit

or med.L formalitas (as FORMAL)]

formaive.html - v.tr.
(also -ise)
1 give definite shape or legal formality to.
2 make ceremonious, precise, or rigid; imbue with formalism.

formalization n.