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Synonym Chooser

How is the word conventional distinct from other similar adjectives?

Some common synonyms of conventional are ceremonial, ceremonious, and formal. While all these words mean "marked by attention to or adhering strictly to prescribed forms," conventional implies accord with general custom and usage and may suggest a stodgy lack of originality or independence.

conventional courtesy
conventional fiction

How are the words ceremonial and ceremonious related as synonyms of conventional?

Ceremonial and ceremonious both imply strict attention to what is prescribed by custom or by ritual, but ceremonial applies to things that are associated with ceremonies.

a ceremonial offering

When is it sensible to use ceremonious instead of conventional?

In some situations, the words ceremonious and conventional are roughly equivalent. However, ceremonious applies to persons given to ceremony or to acts attended by ceremony.

made his ceremonious entrance

Where would formal be a reasonable alternative to conventional?

The synonyms formal and conventional are sometimes interchangeable, but formal applies both to things prescribed by and to persons obedient to custom and may suggest stiff, restrained, or old-fashioned behavior.

a formal report
the headmaster's formal manner

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of conventional The original clowning actors in the United States joined trick riders on horseback, jugglers, and rope walkers to draw laughs by mocking conventional norms of the time. Time, 30 Oct. 2025 And the supernatural does show up, although Wise’s slow-burn approach means that the film is blessedly free from conventional jump scares. Katie Rife, Entertainment Weekly, 30 Oct. 2025 The play’s deep ambivalence to war and conventional heroism certainly owes something to its historical moment. Elizabeth D. Samet, Foreign Affairs, 29 Oct. 2025 Radical is pitching this category of aircraft as a kind of jack-of-all-trades that can fill gaps left by satellites, drones, and conventional planes. Mack Degeurin, Popular Science, 29 Oct. 2025 See All Example Sentences for conventional
Recent Examples of Synonyms for conventional
Adjective
  • His usual producer, Nick Schwarz, took the first crack at it and cut a version that hit hard.
    Tom Roland, Billboard, 5 Nov. 2025
  • Across all household sizes, the SNAP reduction is roughly 49 percent—meaning households claiming the top amount will get about half of their usual monthly benefit in November.
    Hannah Parry, MSNBC Newsweek, 5 Nov. 2025
Adjective
  • Current challenges Building Electric Road Systems (ERS) is significantly more expensive than traditional highway construction.
    Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 8 Nov. 2025
  • Some suggest this is because climate change is interfering with the flowering and pollination of some of the animals’ traditional sources of food.
    Jessie Yeung, CNN Money, 7 Nov. 2025
Adjective
  • In Akita, local authorities requested formal military assistance from Japan’s Self-Defense Forces, saying their existing measures – including box traps and bear repellent sprays – weren’t enough.
    Jessie Yeung, CNN Money, 7 Nov. 2025
  • Being Running Fence’s associate project director was my first formal job in the arts.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 7 Nov. 2025
Adjective
  • Taichito’s current location is unknown.
    Kim Aris, Time, 7 Nov. 2025
  • Soon, Wegovy and Zepbound will be sold on a new website—dubbed TrumpRx—for only about $250 a month, a fraction of their current retail price of more than $1,000.
    Nicholas Florko, The Atlantic, 7 Nov. 2025
Adjective
  • There was no customary surge in gas prices over the summer, and fuel costs began the most recent decline as autumn arrived.
    Washington Examiner Staff, The Washington Examiner, 4 Nov. 2025
  • The closing is expected to happen during the first quarter of 2026, subject to certain conditions, including customary regulatory approvals and payment of the purchase price.
    David Moin, Footwear News, 31 Oct. 2025
Adjective
  • The outward-facing push is also ceremonial.
    Emiliano De Pablos, Variety, 7 Nov. 2025
  • During his speech, Suarez gave him a ceremonial gold key for the project.
    Seung Min Kim, Fortune, 6 Nov. 2025
Adjective
  • Dissent is nothing more than the expression of an opinion that varies from the prevailing or traditional view or the position held by those in power.
    Elizabeth Shackelford, Twin Cities, 26 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • An ultra-orthodox school sat adjacent to the library, and its staff supplied the settlers with sleeping mats and air conditioning for the long night.
    Ryan Byrnes, Literary Hub, 7 Oct. 2025
  • The Vatican said Leo will travel to the town of Iznik, modern day Nicaea, for the anniversary and while in Turkey is expected to meet Ecumenical Patriarch Batholomew, the spiritual leader of the approximately 300 million Eastern orthodox Christians.
    Christopher Lamb, CNN Money, 7 Oct. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Conventional.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/conventional. Accessed 9 Nov. 2025.

More from Merriam-Webster on conventional

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