optical

adjective

op·ti·cal | \ ˈäp-ti-kəl

Definition of optical

1 : of or relating to the science of optics

2a : of or relating to vision : visual

b : visible sense 1 optical wavelength

c : of, relating to, or being objects that emit light in the visible range of frequencies an optical galaxy

d : using the properties of light to aid vision an optical instrument

3a : of, relating to, or utilizing light especially instead of other forms of energy optical microscopy

b : involving the use of light-sensitive devices to acquire information for a computer optical character recognition

4 : of or relating to optical art

Other Words from optical Synonyms & Antonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about optical

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Synonyms & Antonyms for optical

Synonyms

ocular, optic, visual

Antonyms

nonvisual

Examples of optical in a Sentence

The company manufactures microscopes, telescopes, and other optical instruments. an optical illusion that fools most people

Recent Examples on the Web

Mirrors make life really tough when designing a high-quality optical system. — Chris Lee, Ars Technica, "Gas jets make beautiful lens for light we can’t normally focus," 21 Dec. 2018 Both trends have an obvious optical appeal that makes each well suited for Instagram . . — Vogue, "The Best Fashion Trends of 2018, According to You, Our Instagram Followers," 18 Dec. 2018 Traditional smartphones process color, white balance, exposure, and other optical characteristics to create an image. — Mark Hachman, PCWorld, "Meet Qualcomm's Snapdragon 855: AI boosts, a smarter camera, mobile gaming—and bye-bye, JPEG," 5 Dec. 2018 According to its website, KPNO has the world's largest collection of optical telescopes. — azcentral, "From climate to fry bread, 125 reasons to love Arizona," 15 May 2015 Using a variety of bricks and clever optical tricks, the architects were able to make the windowless, red brick facade look like a piece of wavering fabric. — Liz Stinson, Curbed, "This red brick facade looks like a rippling piece of fabric," 19 Oct. 2018 In addition to joining her GMA co-stars at the desk on certain mornings and working on Flea Market Flip, Lara has been collaborating with Tura Inc. on a new sunglasses and optical collection. — Kayla Keegan, Good Housekeeping, "Lara Spencer From 'Good Morning America' Announces Exciting New Project," 27 Aug. 2018 Among the first signature initiatives that should come out of the command in the next few years, Army leaders say, is new optical headwear for soldiers that can display maps or simulate missions. — Paul J. Weber, Fox News, "Army honors McCain in opening new modernization HQ in Texas," 24 Aug. 2018 The car passed all the optical scanning station inspections and everything after the race. — Mike Hembree, USA TODAY, "Kevin Harvick blames social media reaction for stiff NASCAR penalties," 9 Mar. 2018

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