immaterial

adjective

ˌi-mə-ˈtir-ē-əl How to pronounce immaterial (audio)
Definition of immaterialnext
1
as in spiritual
not composed of matter it is only possible to study immaterial forces like gravity by observing their effects on the physical world

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in irrelevant
not having anything to do with the matter at hand while undoubtedly upsetting, that story is immaterial to the question of why you are late

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 immaterial But that doesn’t mean what happens along the way is immaterial. — Kansas City Star, 25 Aug. 2026 The live audience was immaterial as long as the jokes were funny. — IEEE Spectrum, 2 Aug. 2026 To the casual observer, the look and feel of shipping containers suggests a world of smooth, lossless transportation, almost immaterial in its implementation of a logistical ideal. — Alexander Klose, Scientific American, 24 July 2026 The money, in Gupta’s view, is immaterial. — April Long, Allure, 24 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for immaterial
Recent Examples of Synonyms for immaterial
  1. spiritual
  2. irrelevant
  3. incorporeal
  4. metaphysical
  5. nonmaterial
  6. invisible
  7. supernatural
  8. nonphysical
Adjective
  • At the heart of this approach is the belief that each child has a right to holistic, empathetic care during illness and throughout end of their life that considers their unique social, cultural, physical and spiritual needs.
    — Emilee Flynn, The Conversation, 3 Nov. 2026
  • As Lefens mixes spiritual elements with the quotidian, the novel examines the paradoxes of safety, responsibility, and trust.
    — The New Yorker, New Yorker, 2 Nov. 2026
Definition of spiritual
Adjective
  • In Leipzig, Nelsons’ contribution to the Gewandhaus democracy weekend was no democracy at all, only an irrelevant program of Tchaikovsky and Dvorak standards.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 2 Nov. 2026
  • The arrangement of these nine numbers in the triangle is irrelevant.
    — Heinrich Hemme, Scientific American, 31 Oct. 2026
Definition of irrelevant
Adjective
  • Followers of the Abrahamic religions are supposed to treat God as immaterial and incorporeal, yet these early Yahweh worshippers imagined him as fully embodied.
    — Manvir Singh, New Yorker, 9 Mar. 2026
  • Positioned as a large-scale genre event, the series updates the legendary SFX property with a contemporary political and social edge, with Shun Oguri leading the cast as a detective hunting a seemingly incorporeal killer.
    — Patrick Brzeski, HollywoodReporter, 27 Jan. 2026
Definition of incorporeal
Adjective
  • The latter perhaps most acutely reflected such dominant motifs in Gibson’s midcareer work as female figures, birds, and metaphysical reflectors.
    — The Editors of ARTnews, ARTnews.com, 20 Oct. 2026
  • The best moments on records like Redemption, Blackheart, and Second Line use her knack for grand, metaphysical metaphors to charge her singing with epic stakes.
    — Stephen Kearse, Pitchfork, 9 Oct. 2026
Definition of metaphysical
Adjective
  • The author excludes them all, asserting that belief in any kind of nonmaterial, ethereal world lacks empirical support.
    — Denis Alexander, Washington Post, 17 Mar. 2023
  • The first part of the book is committed to a ground-clearing exercise, describing the various concepts of the nonmaterial soul that feature in many different religious belief systems.
    — Denis Alexander, Washington Post, 17 Mar. 2023
Definition of nonmaterial
Adjective
  • The mostly invisible bits course through blood and pass from mother to child through the placenta and breast milk.
    — Michael Hawthorne, Chicago Tribune, 22 Oct. 2026
  • Why invisible warmth is catching on The cultural setup for this trend was already in place.
    — Hanna Wickes, Miami Herald, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of invisible
Adjective
  • The other Vision is a supernatural manifestation, brought to life via Wanda Maximoff’s sorcery; he is known as Hex Vision.
    — Jeff Spry, Space.com, 2 Nov. 2026
  • And yet, ghost stories will often have women as supernatural witches, coming back to curse people or cause trouble.
    — Joseph States, Chicago Tribune, 29 Oct. 2026
Definition of supernatural
Adjective
  • In Ayurveda, Prana, the life force carried by the breath, is understood to nourish both the mind and body and can be viewed as a nonphysical substance, finer than oxygen.
    — Trisha Swift, Forbes.com, 28 July 2025
  • In accounting, intangible assets are nonphysical possessions including such things as brands and intellectual property, software, mineral rights ‒ and contracts.
    — Alexander Coolidge, The Enquirer, 2 July 2025
Definition of nonphysical

Browse Nearby Words

immanent
immaterial
immateriality
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Immaterial.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/immaterial. Accessed 4 Nov. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of fulsome

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

7 Words for Old-Timey Vehicles

Ten More Words from Taylor Swift Songs

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
couple-laugh-cafe
Quiz: Foreign Phrases You Should Know Check out your bona fides and avoid any faux pas.
See All