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tr.v. con·sti·tut·ed, con·sti·tut·ing, con·sti·tutes 1. a. To be the elements or parts of; compose: Copper and tin constitute bronze. b. To amount to; equal: "Rabies is transmitted through a bite; ... patting a rabid animal in itself does not constitute exposure" (Malcolm W. Browne). 2. a. To set up or establish according to law or provision: a body that is duly constituted under the charter. b. To found (an institution, for example). c. To enact (a law or regulation). 3. To appoint to an office, dignity, function, or task; designate. [Middle English constituten, from Latin cōnstituere, cōnstitūt-, to set up : com-, com- + statuere, to set up; see stā- in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.] consti·tut′er, consti·tu′tor n. |
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