1
as in melodic
having a pleasantly flowing quality suggestive of music
the lyrical cadences of voice-over narration give the film a very poignant quality
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in poetic
having qualities suggestive of poetry
the photographer achieves a very lyrical effect with her intentionally blurred images of flowers growing in the wild
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Recent Examples of lyrical
Thousands of titles, fragments and lyrical ideas are stacked up.
—
Bryan West, USA Today, 28 May 2026
The average song length is around four minutes, and each one covers so much ground, changes direction so suddenly, and welcomes so many lyrical interpretations, that each of them can feel like the centerpiece, the moment where the central action takes place.
—Sam Sodomsky, Pitchfork, 24 May 2026
The ballad’s main features include a basic verse/chorus structure, slow tempo, lyrical melodic lines, rich harmonies, and accompaniment that support those melodies.
—Angelica Frey, JSTOR Daily, 22 May 2026
Wails pierce the air in a mix of lyrical song and unrestrained cries; a group of mourners wave leafy branches and beat them against the ground in a rhythm.
—ABC News, 18 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for lyrical
Bryan West, USA Today, 28 May 2026
The average song length is around four minutes, and each one covers so much ground, changes direction so suddenly, and welcomes so many lyrical interpretations, that each of them can feel like the centerpiece, the moment where the central action takes place.
—Sam Sodomsky, Pitchfork, 24 May 2026
The ballad’s main features include a basic verse/chorus structure, slow tempo, lyrical melodic lines, rich harmonies, and accompaniment that support those melodies.
—Angelica Frey, JSTOR Daily, 22 May 2026
Wails pierce the air in a mix of lyrical song and unrestrained cries; a group of mourners wave leafy branches and beat them against the ground in a rhythm.
—ABC News, 18 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for lyrical
Recent Examples of Synonyms for lyrical
Adjective
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There has never quite been a critical or scholarly consensus about them, but Bellini, whose music is suspended somewhere between Rossini’s precise brilliance and Donizetti’s rhetorical force, can move audiences with his melodic facility.—
Arya Roshanian,
The New York Review of Books,
6 June 2026
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Where most conversations are half-silent, important figures in Rimbaud’s life are embodied by musical instruments, ranging from overbearing tubas to melodic strings, depending on who’s speaking and their place in the story.—
Siddhant Adlakha,
Variety,
2 June 2026
Adjective
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Through this deceptively simple framework, Hiraide delivers a poetic and poignant meditation on the passage of time, the meaning of work and love, and the surprise of finding joy in life’s ephemeral details.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
9 June 2026
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While this can also be deeply romantic and poetic, themes surrounding your home, family, friendships and inner world take precedence.—
Valerie Mesa,
PEOPLE,
9 June 2026
Adjective
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Unlike the rich, powerful qualities of a dramatic soprano, or the warm, singing tone of a lyric soprano, the coloratura soprano possesses a high range (to the second C above middle C and higher) and extreme agility.—
René Ostberg,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
26 May 2026
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In the end, Turn (W)here became largely a book of experimental and lyric essays, some framed as archival documents, passport stamps, and definitions.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
15 May 2026
Adjective
-
There are ones who are more ideological, others more poetical.—
Scott Roxborough,
HollywoodReporter,
21 Jan. 2026
-
Svelte yet heavy, Clipse’s latest sees all their phonetic and poetical gifts rendered to subtly maximal effect, with their lithe vocals cresting Pharrell’s glossy surfaces like snowfall.—
Peter A. Berry,
Variety,
11 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Lyrical.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lyrical. Accessed 11 Jun. 2026.
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