1
as in graphic
consisting of or relating to pictures
after a desensitizing series of imaginal exposures to the feared object, the phobic person is then exposed to the actual object
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in imaginary
not real and existing only in the imagination
the equator is merely an imaginal line
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of imaginal
Peter [Merry] likes to use is that, when a caterpillar is becoming a butterfly, new ‘imaginal cells’ emerge.
—
Big Think, 7 Aug. 2025
With one technique, for example—called imaginal exposure—you might be asked to visualize the process of going to the airport, boarding the plane, and experiencing a bad bout of turbulence.
—Angela Haupt, TIME, 10 May 2024
Mercury entering into Pisces turns up the imaginal juice.
—USA TODAY, 23 Feb. 2024
Then, from bundles of cells known as imaginal disks, a new body takes form.
—Elizabeth Kolbert, The New Yorker, 13 Mar. 2023
Big Think, 7 Aug. 2025
With one technique, for example—called imaginal exposure—you might be asked to visualize the process of going to the airport, boarding the plane, and experiencing a bad bout of turbulence.
—Angela Haupt, TIME, 10 May 2024
Mercury entering into Pisces turns up the imaginal juice.
—USA TODAY, 23 Feb. 2024
Then, from bundles of cells known as imaginal disks, a new body takes form.
—Elizabeth Kolbert, The New Yorker, 13 Mar. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for imaginal
Adjective
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Associated Press text, photo, graphic, audio and/or video material shall not be published, broadcast, rewritten for broadcast or publication or redistributed directly or indirectly in any medium.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
9 Jan. 2026
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Gobel is not daunted by the graphic content.—
David L. Coddon,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
8 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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As players shoot around, Jake cradles a ball before blowing past an imaginary defender to hammer home a dunk.—
Mirin Fader,
New York Times,
7 Jan. 2026
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At the opening, Natalie, bored and filled with loathing for her parents, flees her family home by retreating into imaginary worlds of vivid, eroticized violence.—
Erin Somers,
The Atlantic,
6 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Some of the sites that CNN examined have less obvious visual clues tying them to missile production.—
Tamara Qiblawi,
CNN Money,
7 Nov. 2025
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Its design blends sculpted carbon fiber with crimson hues, creating a visual symphony that feels alive even at rest.—
Atharva Gosavi,
Interesting Engineering,
6 Nov. 2025
Adjective
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The repetition of that mythic version has buttressed the belief that the fight for American independence was an event somehow separate from world history.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
7 Nov. 2025
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That was a really great mythic take.—
Brian Davids,
HollywoodReporter,
4 Nov. 2025
Adjective
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As one of four special photographic effects supervisors credited on the 1968 classic — Trumbull, Wally Veevers and Tom Howard were the others — Pederson helped create stars, planets, spaceships and the unforgettable five-minute Star Gate sequence.—
Mike Barnes,
HollywoodReporter,
5 Jan. 2026
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Several officers who fought the rioters said the hardest thing to deal with has been the effort by many to play down the violence, despite a massive trove of video and photographic evidence documenting it.—
Mary Clare Jalonick,
Los Angeles Times,
4 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Anmore and Fort Langley — to make up the fictional community.—
Emily Blackwood,
PEOPLE,
8 Nov. 2025
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SpringHill’s involvement signals a likely retention of the original’s format, with real sports stars playing themselves as clients of the fictional sports agency.—
Nellie Andreeva,
Deadline,
7 Nov. 2025
Adjective
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Visible on some stones are pictorial narratives and symbols—words between worlds.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
15 Dec. 2025
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Much more easy to decipher are pictorial sidewall stamps, some of which include: All-Season: These are the cheapest possible tires, with the least possible performance.—
Wes Siler,
Outside,
16 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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In a white Ford Expedition with exempt plates and red emergency lights, Farzam stopped at a checkpoint manned by the National Guard on January 17 and presented a document showing the vehicle was registered to the fictitious Santa Muerte Fire Department, prosecutors said.—
Ray Sanchez,
CNN Money,
2 Nov. 2025
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The film is set in a version of America that, while fictitious, still feels distinctly American.—
Kate Erbland,
IndieWire,
30 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Imaginal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/imaginal. Accessed 9 Jan. 2026.
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