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
Wesley Stenzel, Entertainment Weekly, 10 Oct. 2025
However, at least 23 countries in sub-Saharan Africa are in debt distress or at high risk of distress, the World Bank’s recent assessment noted, with public debt in nominal terms and as a share of GDP nearly doubling over the last decade.
—Alexander Onukwue, semafor.com, 8 Oct. 2025
But analysts believe that figure was nominal if anything.
—Rebecca Rubin, Variety, 6 Oct. 2025
Bills for Medicaid recipients are supposed to be sent to Medicaid, not the patients, who typically pay a nominal amount, if anything, for their care.
—Rae Ellen Bichell, Fortune, 29 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for nominal
Adjective
Drake sought nominal, compensatory, and punitive damages, plus legal fees.
—Wesley Stenzel, Entertainment Weekly, 10 Oct. 2025
However, at least 23 countries in sub-Saharan Africa are in debt distress or at high risk of distress, the World Bank’s recent assessment noted, with public debt in nominal terms and as a share of GDP nearly doubling over the last decade.
—Alexander Onukwue, semafor.com, 8 Oct. 2025
But analysts believe that figure was nominal if anything.
—Rebecca Rubin, Variety, 6 Oct. 2025
Bills for Medicaid recipients are supposed to be sent to Medicaid, not the patients, who typically pay a nominal amount, if anything, for their care.
—Rae Ellen Bichell, Fortune, 29 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for nominal
Recent Examples of Synonyms for nominal
Adjective
-
Though he was widely known for portraying Count Dracula in the 1931 titular film, Lugosi portrayed the Creature in 1943's Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man.—
Jordana Comiter,
PEOPLE,
9 Nov. 2025
-
Pacino stars as the enigmatic titular figure, described as part muse, part ghost of cinema past.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
7 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
The score indicates a slight improvement from the 2023-24 school year, when 26% of students achieved Level 3 or 4.—
Dmitry Martirosov,
Arkansas Online,
12 Nov. 2025
-
Katy Perry's manager appeared to take a slight dig at Wendy's, months after the fast food chain's comments about his pop star client.—
Taylor Ardrey,
USA Today,
11 Nov. 2025
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
-
Donald Green, a political scientist at Columbia University whose research has found that online political advertising has negligible effects on voters, said the firm’s claims were overblown.—
David Smiley,
Miami Herald,
7 Nov. 2025
-
Offering negligible protection compared to Earth’s magnetosphere, these worlds themselves do little to shield any surface dwellers from the particles and radiation emitted by the Sun.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
6 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
At the previous World Cup in 2022, hosted by tiny Qatar, all of England’s games were in Doha or just outside that city.—
Jack Pitt-Brooke,
New York Times,
9 Nov. 2025
-
Nanotubes are ultra-small cylindrical structures, so tiny that thousands could fit across the width of a human hair.—
Jijo Malayil,
Interesting Engineering,
9 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
At a time when the Mavericks need as much good will, or PR, as possible, filing a lawsuit against the Dallas Stars is petty, small and mean.—
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
11 Nov. 2025
-
Her motives apparently range from a desire to save the country to unabashed, petty vindictiveness; the two often overlap.—
Antonia Hitchens,
New Yorker,
10 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Nominal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nominal. Accessed 14 Nov. 2025.
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