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
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
Meta's notional short interest has soared 75%, or $11 billion, so far in 2025, S3 said in a note Monday.
—Pia Singh,yun Li, CNBC, 18 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for notional
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
Meta's notional short interest has soared 75%, or $11 billion, so far in 2025, S3 said in a note Monday.
—Pia Singh,yun Li, CNBC, 18 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for notional
Recent Examples of Synonyms for notional
Adjective
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Palmer’s goal from open play, which involved theoretical No 10 Fernandez carrying the ball out wide, full-back Cucurella underlapping him, and Palmer finishing in the box, summed that up.—
Cerys Jones,
New York Times,
8 Feb. 2026
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The partnership is shifting from theoretical research to the project development phase, with a focus on delivering a 50 MW commercial pilot.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
5 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Finally, the researchers did another version of the original test but used imaginary grapes instead of juice, with similar results.—
Evan Bush,
NBC news,
5 Feb. 2026
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Unfortunately, the new love in your life may be imaginary and only after your bank account.—
C. A. Bridges,
Florida Times-Union,
4 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Suffice to say that Zi’s condition may not be a physical issue or even a mental one but, rather, a metaphysical state.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
4 Feb. 2026
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Breaking down such a layered metaphysical concept with the relatively few words left in this review would be a fool’s errand, but suffice it to say that all of the math miraculously checks out.—
Christian Zilko,
IndieWire,
26 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Comulate also invented a fictitious insurance agent named Jordan Bates, who purported to work for PBC and who interacted with Applied Systems salespeople through email (with a Phoenix Benefits email domain) to create a customer account on Applied’s Epic.—
John Hyatt,
Forbes.com,
30 Jan. 2026
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In a comparable case in the United States in 2023, a federal judge imposed $5,000 fines on two lawyers and a law firm after ChatGPT was blamed for their submission of fictitious legal research in an aviation injury claim.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
27 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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My empathy for immigrants and refugees is not abstract.—
Valeng Cha,
Twin Cities,
8 Feb. 2026
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In the 9th District, those debates are no longer abstract.—
Olivia Olander,
Chicago Tribune,
8 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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The best of all sports-movie subgenres, football films have given us great characters – real and fictional – and a bunch of awesome cinematic moments in everything from screwball comedies to real-life narratives.—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
6 Feb. 2026
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The overall look has drawn comparisons to a fictional stealth aircraft rather than a conventional Navy jet.—
Sujita Sinha,
Interesting Engineering,
5 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Diesel asks at the top of the spot (below), which shows footage of riders speeding through a conceptual rendering of the coaster — featuring vehicles that rotate along a course that also includes three inversions.—
Joey Nolfi,
Entertainment Weekly,
8 Feb. 2026
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My ultimate goal is to combine this conceptual part with products and do more artwork that inspires more people.—
Lisa Lockwood,
Footwear News,
6 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Indeed, Orient Express is perhaps the most mythic name in the travel world.—
Adam Erace,
Travel + Leisure,
6 Feb. 2026
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What begins as paranormal record-keeping gradually reveals a mythic tale centered on people who, fittingly, were mostly writers.—
Shannon Taggart,
Artforum,
1 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Notional.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/notional. Accessed 13 Feb. 2026.
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