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
There can’t be a postmortem after most league matches that says only major surgery will solve things sometime in a notional future.
—
Andy Mitten, The Athletic, 21 Feb. 2025
Many have notional timelines or resource constraints that are subject to renegotiation during the lifetime of an assignment.
—Mark Settle, Forbes, 20 Feb. 2025
This could push China first over the finish line in a notional race to return Martian materials to Earth—but at considerable scientific cost.
—Lee Billings, Scientific American, 8 Jan. 2025
His tax reform of 1978, a major priority, was dead on arrival even among notional allies.
—Bloomberg Opinion, Twin Cities, 2 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for notional
Andy Mitten, The Athletic, 21 Feb. 2025
Many have notional timelines or resource constraints that are subject to renegotiation during the lifetime of an assignment.
—Mark Settle, Forbes, 20 Feb. 2025
This could push China first over the finish line in a notional race to return Martian materials to Earth—but at considerable scientific cost.
—Lee Billings, Scientific American, 8 Jan. 2025
His tax reform of 1978, a major priority, was dead on arrival even among notional allies.
—Bloomberg Opinion, Twin Cities, 2 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for notional
Recent Examples of Synonyms for notional
Adjective
-
For stock market investors, the equity risk premium is the theoretical excess return of stocks over risk-free assets to account for market risk.—
,
CNBC,
19 May 2025
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But this wasn’t a concept Kang pursued purely for its theoretical strength.—
Tamerra Griffin,
New York Times,
17 May 2025
Adjective
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The imaginary elements of the story — the witches, and the university — stem from growing up with my father, and reading novels by Julio Verne and Emilio Salgari.—
Ernesto Lechner,
Rolling Stone,
10 May 2025
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New York is a realm of fantasy and myth, obsession and resentment, fear and bewilderment for many who’ve never set foot in it; and many who live here also purvey and perpetuate some version of the imaginary city.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
10 May 2025
Adjective
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Her interest in mysteries and the occult began in the metaphysical section at her local Borders.—
Roya Backlund,
StyleCaster,
16 May 2025
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In my adolescence, the fight turned emotional and metaphysical, mirroring the peaks and valleys of hormonal mood shifts.—
Carla Sosenko,
Vogue,
8 May 2025
Adjective
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The two stars of the Emmy-winning 1990s romantic comedy series Northern Exposure, set in the zany fictitious town of Cicely, Alaska, are adding their names to the avalanche of television stars binging their old shows, offering commentary about the storylines and sharing behind-the-scenes tales.—
Jordan Hoffman,
EW.com,
6 May 2025
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Later on, Weekend Update featured a trio of guest appearances from Bowen Yang who resurrected his recurring Chinese trade minister Chen Biao, Emil Wakim and his notes on American patriotism and Sarah Sherman as Jost’s fictitious accountant Dawn Altman.—
Natalie Oganesyan,
Deadline,
12 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Wingard’s sequel is a bit more abstract than its predecessor, focusing too much on strange world-building and too little on the battle between our two beloved heavies.—
EW.com,
EW.com,
8 May 2025
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The channel features an abstract logo with Letterman’s signature beard and glasses.—
Dade Hayes,
Deadline,
6 May 2025
Adjective
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Helios, the Greek god of the sun, and Luna, the mythical goddess of the moon, stand guard at either end of Celestial Park.—
Patrick Connolly,
The Orlando Sentinel,
16 May 2025
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The green obsidian was also thought to have a symbolic connection to Tollan, a mythical city where the god Quetzalcoatl lived, which was believed to be the ancestral origin of Mexico’s civilizations.—
Ashley Strickland,
CNN Money,
16 May 2025
Adjective
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Surreal, beautiful, and then truly shocking, this is a classic conceptual A24 horror, with all the hallucinatory imagery, and head-spinning, hairpin bends that entails.—
Radhika Seth,
Vogue,
7 May 2025
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Solomon bravely represented conceptual artists such as Paik and Gordon Matta-Clark, and artists from the Arte Povera, and the Pattern and Decoration movements.—
Tom Teicholz,
Forbes.com,
7 May 2025
Adjective
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Ready to swap the real-world drama for a fictional web of secrets and lies?—
Andrea Bartz,
People.com,
18 May 2025
-
It’s set in the (fictional) city of Eddington, NM, where the local sheriff, Joaquin Phoenix’s Joe Cross, tools around town responding to minor crises like noise complaints.—
Stephanie Zacharek,
Time,
17 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Notional.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/notional. Accessed 22 May. 2025.
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