1
as in theoretical
dealing with or expressing a quality or idea
she has a notional understanding of romantic love but no actual experience of being in love
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in imaginary
not real and existing only in the imagination
your computer's "visits" to various parts of cyberspace are entirely notional—you stay put and the Web pages come to you
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of notional
These challenges all place a premium on quiet peacetime coordination between Washington and Taipei to build alignment on notional military plans and war aims, procedures for escalation management and signaling to Beijing, and conditions for terminating a war.
—
Rebecca Lissner, Foreign Affairs, 14 Nov. 2025
According to The Times, payment of the notional rent would only be enforced if Andrew failed to maintain the property's refurbishment.
—Edward Segarra, USA Today, 21 Oct. 2025
But Tianwen 3 needs to land even lower down, with the criteria being at least 9,840 feet (3,000 m) below notional sea level, according to a paper published in the journal Nature by scientists involved in the mission.
—Andrew Jones, Space.com, 1 Oct. 2025
The United States 3rd Marine Division executes a notional fire mission with the Navy-Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System during a training exercise at Camp Hansen on Japan's Okinawa Island on July 28, 2025.
—Ryan Chan, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for notional
Rebecca Lissner, Foreign Affairs, 14 Nov. 2025
According to The Times, payment of the notional rent would only be enforced if Andrew failed to maintain the property's refurbishment.
—Edward Segarra, USA Today, 21 Oct. 2025
But Tianwen 3 needs to land even lower down, with the criteria being at least 9,840 feet (3,000 m) below notional sea level, according to a paper published in the journal Nature by scientists involved in the mission.
—Andrew Jones, Space.com, 1 Oct. 2025
The United States 3rd Marine Division executes a notional fire mission with the Navy-Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System during a training exercise at Camp Hansen on Japan's Okinawa Island on July 28, 2025.
—Ryan Chan, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for notional
Recent Examples of Synonyms for notional
Adjective
-
With all of the film’s complicated theoretical physics and flowery musings about the power of love and time, going melodramatic could push the film into eyeroll territory.—
Chris Feil,
Vulture,
1 May 2026
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The emergence of synthetic performers such as Tilly Norwood reflects how quickly those questions have moved from theoretical to practical.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
1 May 2026
Adjective
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Footnotes and excerpts from imaginary texts add to the story’s worldbuilding and its charm.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
1 May 2026
-
The takeaway isn’t that morning anxiety is imaginary.—
Allison Palmer,
Charlotte Observer,
30 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Glenn Turner, the former owner of a pagan and metaphysical shop, is running as a member of the Green Party.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
1 May 2026
-
Matarrese delves into the history underlying these two women’s longstanding feud and arrives at a tragicomic, inventive meditation on the metaphysical possibility of reconciliation and forgiveness.—
Zac Ntim,
Deadline,
29 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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First, Jones submitted fraudulent expense reimbursement requests for fictitious business expenses.—
Irene Wright,
USA Today,
30 Apr. 2026
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Investigators say the monthly payroll expenses and the number of employees were fictitious and that the documents used to support the monthly income for the companies were false.—
Joseph Buczek,
CBS News,
27 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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His prose is equally forbidding—dense and abstract, in the long tradition of German philosophy.—
Adam Kirsch,
The Atlantic,
3 May 2026
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The consequences are not abstract.—
Nick Lichtenberg,
Fortune,
3 May 2026
Adjective
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That is the unhinged (complimentary) premise of Thomas Elrod’s debut, in which the fictional cult-classic epic fantasy Malicarn series is staged on an island with unwitting actors temporarily imprinted with the characters’ backstories.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
1 May 2026
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Midtown office buildings One of the most recognizable locations in the film is 1221 Avenue of the Americas, a 51-story tower in Midtown Manhattan that served as the exterior for the fictional Runway magazine headquarters in the original 2006 film.—
Kelly McGreal , Khloe Quill,
FOXNews.com,
1 May 2026
Adjective
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In a world where young athletes can earn significant compensation through NIL and revenue share, the NCAA faced conceptual hurdles trying to defend prize money rules.—
Michael McCann,
Sportico.com,
4 May 2026
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In this conceptual system, there is also an equivalence between the duties of various tribes—defense, sustenance, healing—and the overall balance of nature, in which each animal plays its part.—
Glenn Adamson,
Artforum,
2 May 2026
Adjective
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But there's also race history, manifested in fandom by Secretariat, the almost mythical champion racehorse known as Big Red who ruled the tracks in the mid-1970s.—
Javier Zarracina,
USA Today,
1 May 2026
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In Phantom Combatants, Tontey transforms Karamoy from a singular historical figure into a mythic presence multiplied through a chorus of young troops, according to a press release.—
Harrison Jacobs,
ARTnews.com,
29 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Notional.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/notional. Accessed 6 May. 2026.
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