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A figment is something formed from imaginary elements. Daydreams are figments; nightmares are figments that can seem very real. Most figments are everyday fears and hopes about small things that turn out to be imaginary. But when the radio play "The War of the Worlds" aired in 1938, it caused a panic among thousands of people who didn't realize the Martian invasion was just a figment of the author's imagination.
Synonyms of figment
Examples of figment in a Sentence
unable to find any tracks in the snow the next morning, I was forced to conclude that the shadowy figure had been a figment of my imagination
thus far, the invisible human being has been nothing more than a figment of fantasy writers
Recent Examples on the Web
According to Jean-Jacques L’Henaff, vice president of design at American Standard, the shift away from bathtubs is not a figment of our imagination.
—
Mary Cornetta, Better Homes & Gardens, 5 Mar. 2026
China occupies islands across the South China Sea without even a figment of legal right.
—David Frum, The Atlantic, 2 Mar. 2026
That practice remained with Cronin over the next six months, providing a figment to cling to as Dent failed to re-enact that greatness.
—Aaron Heisen, Daily News, 27 Feb. 2026
Excusing those two flickers of broken hegemony, the WSL’s highest echelon has been an unassailable strongbox, a figment of the rest of the table’s imagination.
—Megan Feringa, New York Times, 9 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for figment
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Mary Cornetta, Better Homes & Gardens, 5 Mar. 2026
China occupies islands across the South China Sea without even a figment of legal right.
—David Frum, The Atlantic, 2 Mar. 2026
That practice remained with Cronin over the next six months, providing a figment to cling to as Dent failed to re-enact that greatness.
—Aaron Heisen, Daily News, 27 Feb. 2026
Excusing those two flickers of broken hegemony, the WSL’s highest echelon has been an unassailable strongbox, a figment of the rest of the table’s imagination.
—Megan Feringa, New York Times, 9 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for figment
Cite this Entry
“Figment.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/figment. Accessed 10 Mar. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
figment
noun
fig·ment
ˈfig-mənt 
: something imagined or made up
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