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
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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 fictional
Verizon had no say over the fate of an actor who once played a fictional ad icon on its behalf, but consumers got the joke.
—
Brian Steinberg, Variety, 29 Jan. 2026
The fictional group’s leader, Peter (Denver Milord), is obsessive, driving his bandmates, especially the lead singer-songwriter Diana (Claire DeJean), to greater heights.
—Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune, 29 Jan. 2026
The streaming giant has closed what has been described as an unprecedented deal to land the rights to the Cosmere books, the fictional literary universe by fantasy author Brandon Sanderson.
—Borys Kit, HollywoodReporter, 28 Jan. 2026
Moore portrays fictional fashion designer Christie Smith in the crime flick, which also stars Keke Palmer, Taylour Paige, and Naomi Ackie.
—Hannah Malach, InStyle, 27 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for fictional
Brian Steinberg, Variety, 29 Jan. 2026
The fictional group’s leader, Peter (Denver Milord), is obsessive, driving his bandmates, especially the lead singer-songwriter Diana (Claire DeJean), to greater heights.
—Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune, 29 Jan. 2026
The streaming giant has closed what has been described as an unprecedented deal to land the rights to the Cosmere books, the fictional literary universe by fantasy author Brandon Sanderson.
—Borys Kit, HollywoodReporter, 28 Jan. 2026
Moore portrays fictional fashion designer Christie Smith in the crime flick, which also stars Keke Palmer, Taylour Paige, and Naomi Ackie.
—Hannah Malach, InStyle, 27 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for fictional
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fictional
Adjective
-
Comulate also invented a fictitious insurance agent named Jordan Bates, who purported to work for PBC and who interacted with Applied Systems salespeople through email (with a Phoenix Benefits email domain) to create a customer account on Applied’s Epic.—
John Hyatt,
Forbes.com,
30 Jan. 2026
-
In a comparable case in the United States in 2023, a federal judge imposed $5,000 fines on two lawyers and a law firm after ChatGPT was blamed for their submission of fictitious legal research in an aviation injury claim.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
27 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
The bottom three stars can then be used to point the way to the Andromeda galaxy, by following an imaginary line from the 'base' of the stellar triangle up through the bright star Shedar and beyond, as shown in the finder map above.—
Anthony Wood,
Space.com,
28 Jan. 2026
-
In demonstrating the technology to CalMatters, using an imaginary 56-year-old female patient who complained of trouble breathing, Scope asked several follow-up questions to drill down on her symptoms.—
Cal Matters,
Mercury News,
28 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Corridors are bedecked in vivid wallpaper with oversized flora and animals, real and mythical, and the hotel’s art collection that meets your eye around every corner is a go-for-broke assemblage of everything from old-world oils to ambitious mixed media and 20th-century American photography.—
Arati Menon,
Condé Nast Traveler,
30 Jan. 2026
-
Buddhist Symbolism And Pop-Culture Surprises Even the walk to the temple’s main hall, surrounded by a watery moat, is a mythical spectacle.—
Vicky Smith,
Forbes.com,
30 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Del Col’s imagined protagonist is Pierre, a French bakery assistant who learns Hitler is his biological father.—
Rosemary Counter,
Vanity Fair,
19 Jan. 2026
-
Taken together, the books on this list show narrators real and imagined grappling with some of life’s greatest challenges, and nevertheless surviving—as timely and valuable a message as readers can ask for.—
Lucy Feldman,
Time,
9 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Fictional.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fictional. Accessed 5 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
