as in fictitious
not real and existing only in the imagination
the events in the horror movie seemed so real to some fans that they could not believe that the whole thing was fictional
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Recent Examples of fictional
The bad fortune stretched to soccer when fans of the Ecuador’s national team took over the Rocky steps and sang and danced and waved flags and … dressed Rocky in a team jersey and tied the country’s flag around the fictional fighter’s neck.
—
Dan Gelston, Chicago Tribune, 18 June 2026
The setting is a tiny, fictional island three hours off the coast of New England, reachable only by ferry.
—Rachel Syme, New Yorker, 18 June 2026
In his directorial debut, Early, who also wrote the film, plays Maddie, a blonde naif who skyrockets to viral fame for recipes created in the test kitchen of GourMaybe, a fictional but winkingly all-too-familiar online content hub.
—Sam Stone, Bon Appetit Magazine, 18 June 2026
Complaining that Seinfeld couldn't get made today is the kind of thing that the fictional Jerry Seinfeld would do, so at least the real-life Jerry Seinfeld is staying true to his pedantic on-screen persona.
—Britt Hayes, Entertainment Weekly, 17 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for fictional
Dan Gelston, Chicago Tribune, 18 June 2026
The setting is a tiny, fictional island three hours off the coast of New England, reachable only by ferry.
—Rachel Syme, New Yorker, 18 June 2026
In his directorial debut, Early, who also wrote the film, plays Maddie, a blonde naif who skyrockets to viral fame for recipes created in the test kitchen of GourMaybe, a fictional but winkingly all-too-familiar online content hub.
—Sam Stone, Bon Appetit Magazine, 18 June 2026
Complaining that Seinfeld couldn't get made today is the kind of thing that the fictional Jerry Seinfeld would do, so at least the real-life Jerry Seinfeld is staying true to his pedantic on-screen persona.
—Britt Hayes, Entertainment Weekly, 17 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for fictional
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fictional
Adjective
-
In 1811, The Nottingham Review newspaper recorded what's believed to be the first historical mention of the fictitious Ludd character, described as a framework knitting apprentice near Leicester.—
Emma Bowman,
NPR,
19 June 2026
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Chen, who is currently being held on $100,000 bail in the Clark County Detention Center, has been charged with five felony counts of bigamy and two counts of intent to utter a fictitious bill/note/check, per FOX5.—
Desiree Anello,
PEOPLE,
16 June 2026
Adjective
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She was arrested last summer for yelling at imaginary people due to her psychiatric challenges, Murphy said.—
Jack Dura,
Los Angeles Times,
13 June 2026
-
But these images as well as those from other cultures are evidence of how deeply the dog is lodged in folk consciousness as an imaginary animal alter ego.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
10 June 2026
Adjective
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The businesses that will win with AI aren’t waiting for a mythical moment when the technology handles everything.—
Tomas Gorny,
Forbes.com,
18 June 2026
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So, why does the 18-year-old, who wears that mythical number for Barcelona — most closely associated with their all-time record scorer and appearance maker Messi — not have the same privilege with La Roja?—
Pol Ballús,
New York Times,
17 June 2026
Adjective
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The humanities will survive not by defending an imagined past of disinterested purity, but by demonstrating their necessity in a fractured republic.—
The Atlantic,
The Atlantic,
16 June 2026
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That is, real, not merely illusory, measures, so that the allure to breach peace for imagined gains is overshadowed.—
Keith Tidman,
Baltimore Sun,
15 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Fictional.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fictional. Accessed 20 Jun. 2026.
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