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as in unmarried
never having had sexual relations a virginal girl who would not permit any liberties to be taken with her body

Synonyms & Similar Words

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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 virginal Her approach is a clean break from the 19th-century tradition of American landscape art, in which de facto propagandists like Albert Bierstadt and Thomas Cole depicted land as radiant and virginal, the birthright of any colonial buccaneer drunk on Manifest Destiny. Jeremy Lybarger, ARTnews.com, 6 Jan. 2025 Depp goes beyond Ellen’s virginal purity to complicate our understanding of this character’s relationship to darkness — how she is at once disturbed by and deeply intimate with it. David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 5 Dec. 2024 That’s because our immune systems are no longer so virginal to the SARS-CoV-2, given previous exposure to its spike proteins via vaccination or natural infection. Bruce Y. Lee, Forbes, 6 Sep. 2024 The film treats Ryder’s Beth as the evil hag witch who the virginal hard worker Nina has to beat to achieve her dreams, and Ryder plays that role with relish and gusto. Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 6 Sep. 2024 See All Example Sentences for virginal
Recent Examples of Synonyms for virginal
Adjective
  • Environmental group Sierra Club said development in the region would harm pristine landscapes that support tribes and wildlife.
    Reuters, USA Today, 7 Oct. 2025
  • With 12 knives that slice, chop, and dice with minimal effort (and a sharpening blade to keep their edges pristine), whipping up more elaborate meals is a bit easier.
    Clara McMahon, PEOPLE, 7 Oct. 2025
Adjective
  • Emma Shipp as Janey Archer, Newland’s sister who is unmarried but desperately wants to change that.
    Joe Otterson, Variety, 2 Oct. 2025
  • Her parents disapproved of her being unmarried and pregnant, and her boyfriend’s strained relationship with his own mother left them with no one to rely on.
    Tereza Shkurtaj, PEOPLE, 20 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • The 3,479,500 copies in pure album sales for the first week set a record on Billboard’s sales chart, of course.
    Chris Willman, Variety, 13 Oct. 2025
  • When there's no thesis or insight, this series feels dangerously close to pure exploitation of a tragedy real people have endured.
    Kelly Lawler, USA Today, 13 Oct. 2025
Adjective
  • Mechanical processes used to produce extra virgin olive oil preserve its natural antioxidant content.
    Merve Ceylan, Health, 10 Oct. 2025
  • This duo features Brightland’s bestselling extra virgin olive oil and vinegar, both of which are sourced from family-run farms.
    Kristi Kellogg, Architectural Digest, 7 Oct. 2025
Adjective
  • The man had immaculate style and exquisite manners.
    Olivia Allen, Vogue, 11 Oct. 2025
  • Our field was immaculate and our team always looked great; first-class uniforms.
    John Maffei, San Diego Union-Tribune, 15 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • That sense of reiterating his faith and a fresh start were on display Sunday night as Brown registered his first two-touchdown game in four seasons to help the resurgent Chiefs beat visiting Detroit 30-17.
    Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 13 Oct. 2025
  • Unfortunately, most bread boxes and bags just don’t keep bread fresh long enough to reach the end of the loaf.
    Caley Sturgill, Southern Living, 13 Oct. 2025
Adjective
  • Hoping to distance herself from the grief and guilt, the workaholic petitions her editor (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) to be assigned to a lighter beat, reporting on the maiden voyage of the luxury yacht the Aurora Borealis.
    Courtney Howard, Variety, 9 Oct. 2025
  • In December 2024, the flying car made its maiden voyage, completing a journey in the skies above Shanghai's Lujiazui Central Business District.
    Eileen Falkenberg-Hull, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 Oct. 2025
Adjective
  • Chihiro and Hiruhiko were engaging in the sort of passionate but chaste dude-bro melodrama that takes place only in shōnen manga.
    Matt Alt, New Yorker, 25 Aug. 2025
  • To win the grand prize, 10 contestants must stay as chaste as possible in a house together for four weeks.
    Kelly Lawler, USA Today, 16 July 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Virginal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/virginal. Accessed 14 Oct. 2025.

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