metaphysical

meta·phys·i·cal

adjective \-ˈfi-zi-kəl\

Definition of METAPHYSICAL

1

: of or relating to metaphysics

2

a : of or relating to the transcendent or to a reality beyond what is perceptible to the senses

b : supernatural

3

: highly abstract or abstruse; also : theoretical

4

often capitalized : of or relating to poetry especially of the early 17th century that is highly intellectual and philosophical and marked by unconventional imagery

— meta·phys·i·cal·ly \-k(ə-)lē\ adverb

Examples of METAPHYSICAL

1. a metaphysical world of spirits
2. <a work that deals with such metaphysical questions as the very nature of knowledge>

First Known Use of METAPHYSICAL

15th century

Related to METAPHYSICAL

Synonyms

conceptual, ideal, ideational, abstract, notional, theoretical (also theoretic)

Antonyms

concrete, nonabstract

Related Words

conjectural, hypothetical, speculative; cosmic (also cosmical), intellectual, mental, spiritual; ethereal, immaterial, incorporeal, insubstantial, nonmaterial, nonphysical, unsubstantial; impalpable, imperceptible, insensible, intangible, invisible; impractical, romantic, transcendent, transcendental, unreal, utopian, visionary

Near Antonyms

material, physical; appreciable, detectable, discernible (also discernable), noticeable, observable, palpable, perceptible, sensible, substantial, tangible, visible; defined, definite, distinct; actual, factual, real

Other Philosophy Terms

dialectic, dualism, epistemology, existentialism, metaphysics, ontology, sequitur, solipsism, transcendentalism

Metaphysical

noun

Definition of METAPHYSICAL

: a metaphysical poet of the 17th century

First Known Use of METAPHYSICAL

1887

Other Literature Terms

apophasis, bathos, bildungsroman, bowdlerize, caesura, coda, doggerel, euphemism, poesy, prosody