1
b
: of, relating to, or characterized by indulgence of bodily appetites
c
: not spiritual : worldly
2
3
: having a sensuous quality
fleshly art
Examples of fleshly in a Sentence
a time of year when people shouldn't focus on fleshly concerns, but instead on spiritual matters
the fleshly eye sees the only finished painting, but the mind's eye sees the genius behind its creation
Recent Examples on the Web
Murderbot has been realized in fleshly form in the sculpted body of Alexander Skarsgård, on the new Apple TV+ series of the same name.
—
Gideon Lewis-Kraus, New Yorker, 13 June 2025
That was the thing about Succession — its characters were monstrous, but the show never lost sight of their fleshly fallibility, their doubts and vulnerabilities.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 31 May 2025
What the world desires, in short, is a glimpse of a video game, which no one will be able to play until 2025—a game that builds an entire alternative world, glowing with the promise of violence and other fleshly thrills.
—Anthony Lane, The New Yorker, 15 Dec. 2023
But the album offers more than deliciously hedonistic thrills: Thrusting us into their operatic world, this Brooklyn band makes peace with their dark memories and fleshly desires.
—Pitchfork, 6 Dec. 2023
When another girl, Addie (Mia Pak), tries to explain Jesus’ status as the Son of God—fully fleshly and fully divine—as the meeting of horizontal and vertical lines at the overlapping center of a Venn diagram, Beatrice fisks the idea earnestly.
—Vinson Cunningham, The New Yorker, 12 Dec. 2022
The grateful nutcracker becomes a living prince and leads Clara through a spinning snowstorm of ballerinas to a sugary kingdom where flamenco-style dancers spin with twisting torsos and entwining arms as fleshly embodiments of Spanish chocolate.
—Sarah L. Kaufman, Washington Post, 25 Nov. 2022
There is a leveling effect to his approach, one that allows About Endlessness to find grandeur in the smallest of everyday moments while also highlighting the fallible, fleshly absurdity of even history’s most outsize figures.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 30 Apr. 2021
They were tempted by curiosity and hunger, by fleshly desires.
—Karla Cornejo Villavicencio, The New Yorker, 18 Jan. 2021
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Gideon Lewis-Kraus, New Yorker, 13 June 2025
That was the thing about Succession — its characters were monstrous, but the show never lost sight of their fleshly fallibility, their doubts and vulnerabilities.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 31 May 2025
What the world desires, in short, is a glimpse of a video game, which no one will be able to play until 2025—a game that builds an entire alternative world, glowing with the promise of violence and other fleshly thrills.
—Anthony Lane, The New Yorker, 15 Dec. 2023
But the album offers more than deliciously hedonistic thrills: Thrusting us into their operatic world, this Brooklyn band makes peace with their dark memories and fleshly desires.
—Pitchfork, 6 Dec. 2023
When another girl, Addie (Mia Pak), tries to explain Jesus’ status as the Son of God—fully fleshly and fully divine—as the meeting of horizontal and vertical lines at the overlapping center of a Venn diagram, Beatrice fisks the idea earnestly.
—Vinson Cunningham, The New Yorker, 12 Dec. 2022
The grateful nutcracker becomes a living prince and leads Clara through a spinning snowstorm of ballerinas to a sugary kingdom where flamenco-style dancers spin with twisting torsos and entwining arms as fleshly embodiments of Spanish chocolate.
—Sarah L. Kaufman, Washington Post, 25 Nov. 2022
There is a leveling effect to his approach, one that allows About Endlessness to find grandeur in the smallest of everyday moments while also highlighting the fallible, fleshly absurdity of even history’s most outsize figures.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 30 Apr. 2021
They were tempted by curiosity and hunger, by fleshly desires.
—Karla Cornejo Villavicencio, The New Yorker, 18 Jan. 2021
Cite this Entry
“Fleshly.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fleshly. Accessed 18 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
fleshly
adjective
flesh·ly
ˈflesh-lē 
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