CANONICAL


Meaning of CANONICAL in English

-ə̇kəl, -ēk- adjective

Etymology: canonic (I) + -al

1.

a. : of, relating to, established by, or conforming to a canon

b. : of or relating to canon law

2. : like or conforming to a general rule : accorded wide acceptance : sanctioned, orthodox , authoritative

the canonical code of the party

the drinking of cocktails was as canonical a rite as the mixing — Sinclair Lewis

3. : belonging to or accepted as forming a canon

a canonical book

canonical scriptures

4. : of or relating to a clergyman (as a canon) or to an ecclesiastical chapter

a canonical house

5. : relating to various of the simplest and most significant forms or schemata to which general equations, statements, or expressions may be reduced without loss of generality : standard , basic

the canonical equations of dynamics

— compare normal form

• ca·non·i·cal·ly -k(ə)lē, -i adverb

Webster's New International English Dictionary.      Новый международный словарь английского языка Webster.