1
as in titular
being something in name or form only
he was the nominal head of state—everyone knew the country was actually run by one of his advisers
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in slight
so small or unimportant as to warrant little or no attention
when you pay $400 for an airline ticket, a ticketing fee of five dollars seems nominal
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in substantive
Related Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of nominal
Elizabeth Marie Himchak, San Diego Union-Tribune, 4 Dec. 2025
Solar Arrays and Navigational Antennas Deployed Everything is nominal following third stage seperation, the ground control is reporting.
—Health Reporter, MSNBC Newsweek, 27 Nov. 2025
The researchers modeled solar variability using a normal distribution with a mean of 80% of nominal irradiance and a standard deviation of 12% to capture seasonal and diurnal shifts.
—Aman Tripathi, Interesting Engineering, 26 Nov. 2025
As a result, Gargotta awarded nominal damages of $1.
—Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 26 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for nominal
Adjective
Train rides have a nominal cost.
—Elizabeth Marie Himchak, San Diego Union-Tribune, 4 Dec. 2025
Solar Arrays and Navigational Antennas Deployed Everything is nominal following third stage seperation, the ground control is reporting.
—Health Reporter, MSNBC Newsweek, 27 Nov. 2025
The researchers modeled solar variability using a normal distribution with a mean of 80% of nominal irradiance and a standard deviation of 12% to capture seasonal and diurnal shifts.
—Aman Tripathi, Interesting Engineering, 26 Nov. 2025
As a result, Gargotta awarded nominal damages of $1.
—Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 26 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for nominal
Recent Examples of Synonyms for nominal
Adjective
-
Violet McGraw, known for playing the titular role in the M3GAN franchise, is set to lead a YA comedy feature in which her character is similarly protective of those close to her but in a slightly less diabolical way.—
Ryan Gajewski,
HollywoodReporter,
15 Jan. 2026
-
Dilbert’s titular character, an engineer working in a cubicle at a high-tech company, goes through many of the routine yet farcical aspects of corporate bureaucracy that many Americans were familiar with.—
Miranda Jeyaretnam,
Time,
14 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
The ice punishes the slightest miscalculations, demands the sharpest of focus.—
Marcus Thompson II,
New York Times,
7 Jan. 2026
-
One report found there may be a slight benefit to moderate drinking, while the other concluded that even one drink a day was linked to a wide range of harms.—
Aria Bendix,
NBC news,
7 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
First Acts: From the symbolic to the substantive, here is a look at what nine new governors elected last year have done in their first weeks in office.—
Maggie Astor,
New York Times,
30 Jan. 2023
-
With his substantive, agreeably granular bass, David Grogan gave prophetic warnings real authority.—
Dallas News,
Dallas News,
23 Dec. 2022
Adjective
-
For a large corporation, that amount might be negligible.—
Ryan Gonzalez,
Denver Post,
13 Jan. 2026
-
So in the short term, the effect would be negligible.—
Shawn Tully,
Fortune,
13 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
The tiny congregation isn’t sure when, or even if, a new church will be built, but an unconventional plan is afoot to raise the bell tower again, this time as a beacon for the valley.—
Mark Price,
Charlotte Observer,
15 Jan. 2026
-
In one photo, the pop star posed in the tiniest green butterfly wing print bikini by Rat & Boa, which came with a matching cover-up.—
Hannah Malach,
InStyle,
15 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Angel went for a respectful middle-of-the-road jab — complimenting her parenting and resilience, but maligning her for being petty.—
Shamira Ibrahim,
Vulture,
5 Jan. 2026
-
Who is not petty or vindictive.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
2 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Nominal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nominal. Accessed 16 Jan. 2026.
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