1
as in mundane
having to do with life on earth especially as opposed to that in heaven
the preacher warned that those who were interested only in carnal pursuits would not see the kingdom of heaven
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in physical
of or relating to the human body
a missionary who tends to the carnal needs of the people as well as to their spiritual concerns
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in sensual
pleasing to the physical senses
carnal attractions of that gambling mecca in the desert
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of carnal
An intense, carnal need takes over mid-bite into a Loli Farms chicken leg.
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Jenn Harris,
Los Angeles Times,
30 Apr. 2026
Outside Richie’s bubble, disco was dying, and the glossy, often carnal stadium pop of the ’80s hadn’t quite arrived.
—
New York Times,
28 Apr. 2026
Emerald Fennell’s reimagined Wuthering Heights got audiences hot under the collar; so will Lena Dunham’s Good Sex, in which Natalie Portman plays a couples therapist discovering her own carnal desires.
—
Savannah Walsh,
Vanity Fair,
15 Apr. 2026
This unapologetically fleshy, carnal, feminine update on David Cronenberg's 1988 psychosexual classic sees Rachel Weisz brilliantly pulling double-duty as identical twin gynecologists Beverly and Elliot Mantle.
—
Matt Cabral,
Entertainment Weekly,
10 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for carnal
Jenn Harris,
Los Angeles Times,
30 Apr. 2026
Outside Richie’s bubble, disco was dying, and the glossy, often carnal stadium pop of the ’80s hadn’t quite arrived.
—
New York Times,
28 Apr. 2026
Emerald Fennell’s reimagined Wuthering Heights got audiences hot under the collar; so will Lena Dunham’s Good Sex, in which Natalie Portman plays a couples therapist discovering her own carnal desires.
—
Savannah Walsh,
Vanity Fair,
15 Apr. 2026
This unapologetically fleshy, carnal, feminine update on David Cronenberg's 1988 psychosexual classic sees Rachel Weisz brilliantly pulling double-duty as identical twin gynecologists Beverly and Elliot Mantle.
—
Matt Cabral,
Entertainment Weekly,
10 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for carnal
Recent Examples of Synonyms for carnal
Adjective
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Now, new research may rewrite the definition of these planets that make the solar system look a little bit mundane.
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However, Mamdani wasted no time putting his stamp on the relatively small Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment (MOME), which is tasked with comparatively mundane administrative duties of issuing shooting permits to film and TV productions.
Adjective
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Balogun crashed into Bosnia’s Tarik Muharemović, landing his foot on top of Muharemović’s during the physical match.
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Hawaiian Tropic’s zinc oxide formula, a physical UV blocker, brushes on with a matte, translucent finish and leaves no white cast on most skin tones.
Adjective
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The Grammy Award-winning artist wore a sensual red dress from the designer’s spring 2026 ready-to-wear collection.
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Warm and sensual, but with a somewhat fresh, floral drydown.
Adjective
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Though editor Yorgos Mavropsaridis (a Yorgos Lanthimos regular) cuts the film with brisk concision, there’s also a welcome temporal elasticity here — the sense that life can change in the blink of an eye, but also stall for undefined passages.
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The researchers fed this millennium-long data into a computer model to determine how much stress has built up along the faults in that temporal window.
Adjective
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Keller police said Michael Mango of Ferris was speeding and arrested him on suspicion of intoxication assault with a vehicle causing serious bodily injury.
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Riverside County Sheriff’s Glynn Wilburn was charged with gross vehicular manslaughter, felony reckless driving causing serious injury and great bodily injury enhancement, according to a June 18 release from the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office.
Adjective
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The terrestrial fueling hardware designed for the Artemis program’s Space Launch System rockets simply cannot function in an orbital environment.
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The remaining planetesimals that did not form into the terrestrial planets are the asteroids of today, left to orbit the inner portion of the solar system.
Adjective
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Computer models and other non-animal testing methods still aren’t the best available science, critics contend.
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The charity reports a 70% increase in multi-animal incidents across England and Wales since 2021, defining such cases as those involving 10 or more animals.
Adjective
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During the Protestant Reformation of the 16th century, both Martin Luther and John Calvin distinguished spiritual from earthly authority and called for a division of labor between the two.
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People at the most senior levels of the government have no earthly idea what's being discussed inside the White House, inside the Oval Office and the Situation Room.
Cite this Entry
“Carnal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/carnal. Accessed 3 Jul. 2026.
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