Meaning & use
strong constitution
Last updated
Meaning
nouncountable
A body that stays healthy and copes well with illness, hard work, harsh weather or rich food.
Grammar: Usually singular with an or have: she has a strong constitution.
Patterns
- have a strong constitution
- need a strong constitution
My grandmother had a strong constitution and rarely caught colds.
You need a strong constitution to work in freezing conditions.
He has such a strong constitution that spicy food never bothers him.
Common combinations
- have a strong constitution
- Anyone who survives that trek must have a strong constitution.
- need a strong constitution
- Sailors need a strong constitution.
- a strong constitution for
- He has a strong constitution for hot weather.
- not for those without a strong constitution
- The film is not for those without a strong constitution.
Synonyms and how they differ
- robust health
- Robust health is a more neutral way to describe being generally fit and well.
- stamina
- Stamina means ability to keep going over time, while constitution concerns overall resistance to illness.
- hardiness
- Hardiness suggests resilience in rough conditions and is used for plants as well.
Opposites
Word family
- constitution noun
- a person's physical makeup and health
- constitutional adjective
- relating to health or to a country's basic laws
- weak constitution noun
- the opposite, being easily made ill
Commonly confused: strong constitution or Constitution?
strong constitution vs Constitution
With a capital C, the Constitution is a country's set of fundamental laws, which is a different meaning.
Practice
After weeks at sea without getting ill, the old sailor proved he had a ___.
Choose one answer.
A strong constitution means a body that resists illness. Weak stomach is the opposite.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “strong constitution”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.