imaginary

adjective

i-ˈma-jə-ˌner-ē How to pronounce imaginary (audio)
Definition of imaginarynext
as in fictitious
not real and existing only in the imagination told by the psychologist that it was perfectly normal for their child to have an imaginary friend

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective imaginary contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of imaginary are chimerical, fanciful, fantastic, quixotic, and visionary. While all these words mean "unreal or unbelievable," imaginary applies to something which is fictitious and purely the product of one's imagination.

an imaginary desert isle

How does the word chimerical relate to other synonyms for imaginary?

Chimerical combines the implication of visionary and fantastic.

chimerical dreams of future progress

In what contexts can fanciful take the place of imaginary?

In some situations, the words fanciful and imaginary are roughly equivalent. However, fanciful suggests the free play of the imagination.

a teller of fanciful stories

When is it sensible to use fantastic instead of imaginary?

The words fantastic and imaginary can be used in similar contexts, but fantastic implies incredibility or strangeness beyond belief.

a fantastic world inhabited by monsters

When could quixotic be used to replace imaginary?

Although the words quixotic and imaginary have much in common, quixotic implies a devotion to romantic or chivalrous ideals unrestrained by ordinary prudence and common sense.

a quixotic crusade

When is visionary a more appropriate choice than imaginary?

While in some cases nearly identical to imaginary, visionary stresses impracticality or incapability of realization.

visionary schemes

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of imaginary The tightening of the library rules reflects the greater restrictions faced by community members who for generations treated the border as little more than an imaginary line. — Trevor Hughes, USA Today, 29 July 2026 Anyway, Will Venable has my imaginary vote, though Mike Vasil's wizardry might be the bigger reason why the White Sox are rolling. — Andy McCullough, New York Times, 17 July 2026 Her function in the movie is less goddess and more imaginary friend. — Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 17 July 2026 The Prime Meridian is the imaginary line at 0 degrees longitude that runs from the North to South Pole, divides the Eastern and Western Hemispheres, and on which all the world’s time zones are based. — Colson Thayer, PEOPLE, 16 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for imaginary
Recent Examples of Synonyms for imaginary
  1. fictitious
  2. fictional
  3. mythical
  4. imagined
  5. imaginal
Adjective
  • Schools received an email from a fictitious two-parent household with both a mother and father interested in enrolling a child.
    — Kristy Buzard, The Conversation, 4 Aug. 2026
  • Twenty years later, Hughes would shoot some of his films at his alma mater, which would serve as the fictitious Shermer High School in the hits The Breakfast Club and Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.
    — Al Shipley, SPIN, 4 Aug. 2026
Definition of fictitious
Adjective
  • Kevin Jonas, Joe Jonas, and Nick Jonas will all reprise their roles as the fictional Gray brothers in the band Connect 3, with comedian Sherry Cola also joining the cast.
    — Madison E. Goldberg, PEOPLE, 5 Aug. 2026
  • Bud Billiken, the page’s fictional editor/mascot described as the guardian and protector of children, was invented by Abbott and the Defender’s executive editor Lucius Harper.
    — Kori Rumore, Chicago Tribune, 5 Aug. 2026
Definition of fictional
Adjective
  • Knott’s has transformed the 1978 Montezooma’s Revenge into a multi-launch coaster with an Aztec treasure hunter theme and a train designed to look like a mythical stone creature.
    — Brady MacDonald, Oc Register, 6 Aug. 2026
  • Yet when the latter is replaced by the abbreviation algol (Algorithmic Language), a whole other order of reference comes into view, involving celestial movements and mythic monstrosities.
    — Jan Tumlir, Artforum, 5 Aug. 2026
Definition of mythical
Adjective
  • Over the course of 13 test flights, SpaceX has attempted to fly Starship along roughly the same suborbital path, while the company has tweaked, re-imagined and designed around various issues that have emerged throughout the flight campaign.
    — Jackie Wattles, CNN Money, 3 Aug. 2026
  • Not always very precisely balanced between horror, homage and mystery, this intriguing if unevenly realized construct will nonetheless lure genre fans and nostalgists alike with its imagined back chapter of golden-age Hollywood.
    — Dennis Harvey, Variety, 31 July 2026
Definition of imagined
Adjective
  • Peter [Merry] likes to use is that, when a caterpillar is becoming a butterfly, new ‘imaginal cells’ emerge.
    — Big Think, Big Think, 7 Aug. 2025
  • With one technique, for example—called imaginal exposure—you might be asked to visualize the process of going to the airport, boarding the plane, and experiencing a bad bout of turbulence.
    — Angela Haupt, TIME, 10 May 2024
Definition of imaginal

Browse Nearby Words

imaginal
imaginary
imagination
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Imaginary.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/imaginary. Accessed 11 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on imaginary

Nglish: Translation of imaginary for Spanish Speakers

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Aug. 7

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
fridge-magnet-letters
Drop a Letter Quiz August 2026 Drop a letter from a word to make a totally diffe...
See All