fanciful

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adjective fan·ci·ful \ˈfan(t)-si-fəl\

Definition of fanciful

1 : marked by fancy or unrestrained imagination rather than by reason and experience a fanciful person a fanciful tale of a monster in the woods
2 : existing in fancy (see ²fancy) only a fanciful notion the falsehoods about some fanciful secret treaties — F. D. Roosevelt
3 : marked by or as if by fancy or whim gave their children fanciful names

fancifully

play \ˈfan(t)-si-f(ə-)lē\ adverb

fancifulness

play \ˈfan(t)-si-fəl-nəs\ noun

See fanciful defined for English-language learners

See fanciful defined for kids

Examples of fanciful in a Sentence

a fanciful tale of a monster in the woods
They gave all their children fanciful names.

Recent Examples of fanciful from the Web

The idea that such information would be unearthed by these particular discovery requests is, to put it charitably, fanciful.

— jack greiner, Cincinnati.com, "Greiner: California can't get IMDb data," 20 July 2017
The fanciful Curse of the Bambino was in great measure among those players the Curse of the Colonel.

— charles p. pierce, SI.com, "David Price should look at Red Sox history and see why battling Boston's media won't work," 14 July 2017
Among the 900 or so objects on display is the large, fanciful 19th-century Great Clock of America.

— roger catlin, Smithsonian, "Renovated Museum Wing Delves into Untold Chapters of American History," 1 July 2017
And so, fanciful paintings of Tenakee life abound, an incredible gift for our little community.

— megan bush moody, Alaska Dispatch News, "Choreographed frenzy: What happens when the ferry arrives in our tiny town," 25 June 2017
The musical offers a partly biographical, partly fanciful scenario of Barrie overcoming a spell of writer’s block to craft a new play after meeting and befriending four young brothers in a London park.

— tim smith, baltimoresun.com, "'Finding Neverland' heads to Baltimore with vintage message, new Hook," 23 June 2017
Stories are fanciful tales woven at bedtime, the plots of melodramatic soap operas.

— katy steinmetz, Time, "This Is Where the Word 'History' Comes From," 23 June 2017
The Detroit edition was added by Tom Nardone, a businessman known locally for a variety of fanciful and philanthropic pursuits such as founding a lawnmower gang that cleans up city parks pro bono.

— david muller, Car and Driver, "Gambler 500 Offers Cheap Excuse to Off-Road a 1983 Toyota Camry," 22 June 2017
Drivers’ fanciful dreams of an investigative team getting to the bottom of each fender-bender are quickly disabused.

— david gutman, The Seattle Times, "Here’s why I-5 is such a mess in Seattle area, and what keeps us moving at all," 19 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'fanciful.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of fanciful

circa 1627

Synonym Discussion of fanciful

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

FANCIFUL Defined for English Language Learners

fanciful

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adjective

Definition of fanciful for English Language Learners

: coming from the imagination
: showing imagination : unusual and appealing

FANCIFUL Defined for Kids

fanciful

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adjective fan·ci·ful \ˈfan-si-fəl\

Definition of fanciful for Students

1 : showing free use of the imagination a fanciful tale
2 : coming from imagination rather than reason He dreamed up a fanciful plan for getting rich.