effectual
English
[edit]Alternative forms
[edit]- effectuall (obsolete)
Etymology
[edit]From Middle English effectual, effectuel, from Old French effectuel, from Late Latin effectualis.
Pronunciation
[edit]Adjective
[edit]effectual (comparative more effectual, superlative most effectual)
- Producing the intended result; entirely adequate.
- 1749, [John Cleland], “(Please specify the letter or volume)”, in Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure [Fanny Hill], London: […] [Thomas Parker] for G. Fenton [i.e., Fenton and Ralph Griffiths] […], →OCLC:
- Redoubling, then, the active energy of his thrusts, favoured by the fervid appetite of my motions, the soft oiled wards can no longer stand so effectual a picklock, but yield, and open him an entrance.
- 1822, John Barclay, chapter I, in An Inquiry Into the Opinions, Ancient and Modern, Concerning Life and Organization[1], Edinburgh, London: Bell & Bradfute; Waugh & Innes; G. & W. B. Whittaker, section I, page 1:
- In the living state, the body is observed to […] adopt most effectual measures for the permanent continuance of its species.