imperial

1 of 2

adjective

im·​pe·​ri·​al im-ˈpir-ē-əl 

1

a

: of, relating to, befitting, or suggestive of an empire or an emperor

b(1)

: of or relating to the United Kingdom as distinguished from the constituent parts

(2)

: of or relating to the Commonwealth of Nations and British Empire

2

a

: sovereign

b

: regal, imperious

3

a

: of superior or unusual size or excellence

b

sometimes Imperial : having a full body and a higher-than-average percentage of alcohol

an imperial stout

4

: belonging to the official British series of weights and measures see Weights and Measures Table

imperially

im-ˈpir-ē-ə-lē 

adverb

imperial

2 of 2

noun

1

Imperial : an adherent or soldier of the Holy Roman emperor

2

: emperor

3

: a pointed beard growing below the lower lip

4

: something of unusual size or excellence

Synonyms

Adjective

• august
• baronial
• epic
• gallant
• glorious
• grand
• grandiose
• heroic
• heroical
• Homeric
• imposing
• magnific
• magnificent
• majestic
• massive
• monumental
• noble
• proud
• regal
• royal
• splendid
• stately

Examples of imperial in a Sentence

Adjective

a member of the imperial family

envisioned an imperial city that would rival the capitals of Europe for beauty and magnificence

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Taking Dickens’s Bleak House—a novel infamously blind to imperial racial dynamics—as his primary example, Hack finds its afterlives in Frederick Douglass’s newspaper reprinting and Hannah Craft’s fictional narrative of enslavement. —Abby Clayton, JSTOR Daily, 29 Apr. 2025

The tour ends with an Incan ceremony in front of the eight-angle-stone wall, part of an imperial Incan wall used in important rituals. —Jennifer Kester, Forbes.com, 28 Apr. 2025

Noun

The seeds of rebellion continue to be planted, with multiple storylines weaving together in tense standoffs that will keep both imperials and agitators on edge. —Ew Staff, EW.com, 25 Apr. 2025

Crab imperial is a dish featuring lump crab in its purest form, enhanced only by a light imperial sauce, without the additional binders used to make crab cakes. —Southern Living Test Kitchen, Southern Living, 8 July 2023

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English imperial, emperiall, borrowed from Anglo-French & Latin; Anglo-French emperial, imperiall, borrowed from Latin imperiālis "of the Roman emperor," from imperium "supreme administrative authority, power exercised by a Roman emperor" + -ālis -al entry 1 — more at empire

Noun

derivative of imperial entry 1, probably after Middle French imperiaux (plural); (sense 3) translation of French impériale

First Known Use

Adjective

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun

circa 1524, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing imperial

• imperial moth

Rhymes for imperial

• arterial
• bacterial
• ethereal
• funereal
• material
• sidereal
• venereal
• antibacterial
• biomaterial
• mycobacterial
• cereal
• virial

Kids Definition

imperial

1 of 2 adjective

im·​pe·​ri·​al im-ˈpir-ē-əl 

: of, relating to, or fine enough for an empire or an emperor

imperially

-ē-ə-lē 

adverb

imperial

2 of 2 noun

: a pointed beard growing below the lower lip