fundamental

 
Pronunciation: /fʌndəˈmɛnt(ə)l/

adjective

  • forming a necessary base or core; of central importance: the protection of fundamental human rights interpretation of evidence is fundamental to the historian’s craft
  • affecting or relating to the essential nature of something or the crucial point about an issue: the fundamental problem remains that of the housing shortage
  • so basic as to be hard to alter, resolve, or overcome: the theories are based on a fundamental error

noun

  • 1 (usually fundamentals) a central or primary rule or principle on which something is based: two courses cover the fundamentals of microbiology
  • 2 Music a fundamental note, tone, or frequency.

Derivatives

fundamentality

Pronunciation: /-ˈtalɪti/
noun

Origin:

late Middle English: from French fondamental, or late Latin fundamentalis, from Latin fundamentum, from fundare 'to found'