chimerical

play

adjective chi·me·ri·cal \kī-ˈmer-i-kəl, kə-, -ˈmir-\

variants: or less commonly

chimeric

play \kī-ˈmer-ik, kə-, -ˈmir-\

Definition of chimerical

1 : existing only as the product of unchecked imagination : fantastically visionary (see ¹visionary 2) or improbable chimerical dreams of economic stability
2 : given to fantastic schemes She's a chimerical optimist infused with utopian visions.
3 usually chimeric a : relating to, derived from, or being a genetic chimera : containing tissue with two or more genetically distinct populations of cells Chimeric mice are generated by mixing cells from two embryos, generating a mouse with four parental contributions. — Nancy L. Nadonb : composed of material (such as DNA or polypeptide) from more than one organism He combined this gene material with safer human DNA and created what's known as a chimeric gene—a gene of antibody instructions that is part man, part mouse. — Eric Hand

chimerically

play \kī-ˈmer-i-k(ə-)lē, kə-, -ˈmir-\ adverb

Examples of chimerical in a Sentence

for the time being, interplanetary travel remains a chimerical feature of life in the 21st century

Origin and Etymology of chimerical

chimera

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First Known Use: 1638

See Words from the same year

Synonym Discussion of chimerical

imaginary, fanciful, visionary, fantastic, chimerical, quixotic mean unreal or unbelievable. imaginary applies to something which is fictitious and purely the product of one's imagination. an imaginary desert isle fanciful suggests the free play of the imagination. a teller of fanciful stories visionary stresses impracticality or incapability of realization. visionary schemes fantastic implies incredibility or strangeness beyond belief. a fantastic world inhabited by monsters chimerical combines the implication of visionary and fantastic . chimerical dreams of future progress quixotic implies a devotion to romantic or chivalrous ideals unrestrained by ordinary prudence and common sense. a quixotic crusade