fundamental

fundamental (http://definr.com/fundamental)

     adj 1: serving as an essential component; "a cardinal rule"; "the
            central cause of the problem"; "an example that was
            fundamental to the argument"; "computers are
            fundamental to modern industrial structure" [syn: cardinal,
             central, key, primal]
     2: being or involving basic facts or principles; "the
        fundamental laws of the universe"; "a fundamental
        incompatibility between them"; "these rudimentary truths";
        "underlying principles" [syn: rudimentary, underlying]
     3: far-reaching and thoroughgoing in effect especially on the
        nature of something; "the fundamental revolution in human
        values that has occurred"; "the book underwent fundamental
        changes"; "committed the fundamental error of confusing
        spending with extravagance"; "profound social changes"
        [syn: profound]
     n : the lowest tone of a harmonic series [syn: {fundamental
         frequency}, first harmonic]