as in irrational
very strange or unusual; having the quality of a dream
a surreal atmosphere at the festival The whole situation was completely surreal.
Related Words
Relevance
Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of surreal
We’re treated to a surreal sequence wherein Cassie transforms into the 50-Foot Woman, stomping all over Downtown Los Angeles like a monster movie, which all seems like a pretext for a scene where Sweeney’s giant boobs burst through the windows of a building.
—
Marlow Stern, Variety, 11 May 2026
The imagery, made in Haiti, New York, Florida, and her current home of Los Angeles, uses both personal, documentary photographs and more surreal, formal portraits to link Cadet’s personal history to a broader meditation on the Black diasporic experience.
—Elly Fishman, Vogue, 8 May 2026
Wynia said the idea of visiting the school for the final time felt surreal, a sentiment shared by current students Marisa Ashraf and Nadia Foushi, friends who will both transfer to Lewis University in Romeoville.
—Olivia Stevens, Chicago Tribune, 8 May 2026
Seeing the vast grasslands—with no roads or fences crisscrossing them—come into view was a surreal experience.
—Mae Hamilton, Travel + Leisure, 8 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for surreal
Marlow Stern, Variety, 11 May 2026
The imagery, made in Haiti, New York, Florida, and her current home of Los Angeles, uses both personal, documentary photographs and more surreal, formal portraits to link Cadet’s personal history to a broader meditation on the Black diasporic experience.
—Elly Fishman, Vogue, 8 May 2026
Wynia said the idea of visiting the school for the final time felt surreal, a sentiment shared by current students Marisa Ashraf and Nadia Foushi, friends who will both transfer to Lewis University in Romeoville.
—Olivia Stevens, Chicago Tribune, 8 May 2026
Seeing the vast grasslands—with no roads or fences crisscrossing them—come into view was a surreal experience.
—Mae Hamilton, Travel + Leisure, 8 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for surreal
Recent Examples of Synonyms for surreal
Adjective
-
His deep dive into the genre left him with some pet peeves, not least the irrational or simply implausible behavior of many horror-movie protagonists.—
Alex Barasch,
New Yorker,
11 May 2026
-
Evans and his backers were rational actors inside an irrational system.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
1 May 2026
Adjective
-
But Fredrik Berselius’s cooking is too weird and wild to fit the bounds of one creed.—
Ligaya Mishan,
New York Times,
11 May 2026
-
Although studying weird worlds such as L 98-59 d will probably help to clarify how planets evolve, researchers are still working to understand this particular one.—
K. R. Callaway,
Scientific American,
11 May 2026
Adjective
-
The band played a rather strange/disturbing version of Happy Birthday, and Bilbo’s cake appeared before us.—
Gregg Kilday,
HollywoodReporter,
12 May 2026
-
One monitor shows guitarist Jonny Greenwood manipulating a strange electronic device exuding tangled wires; another loops footage of a burning building.—
Jonathan Cohen,
SPIN,
12 May 2026
Adjective
-
Another avenue for the administration is to invoke a section of the Trade Act of 1974 that allows tariffs against countries for unreasonable or discriminatory trade practices.—
Judith Kohler,
Denver Post,
7 May 2026
-
And to be fair to Rivers, many people wondered aloud if Green was being unreasonable, incorrect, delusional or all of the above.—
Zach Harper,
New York Times,
7 May 2026
Adjective
-
That’s easier to accomplish the further the plot moves away from a diplomatic incident involving several national institutions and toward an occasionally absurd — but absorbing and well-paced — tale of individuals in over their heads.—
Alison Herman,
Variety,
8 May 2026
-
The attempt by right-wing activists to use the collapse of Spirit Airlines as a cudgel against the Democrats is ironic and absurd.—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
6 May 2026
Adjective
-
But, in other respects, your approach to the future might have been unusual, at least by our modern lights.—
Joshua Rothman,
New Yorker,
8 May 2026
-
They have also been shown to exhibit play behavior with objects in their enclosures, highly unusual behavior for a reptile.—
Craig Stanford,
Big Think,
7 May 2026
Adjective
-
Fans saw the result last year on Christmas Eve, when all three games were either meaningless or close to it, featuring just one playoff team.—
Bobby Burack OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
11 May 2026
-
Nurse spoke before Game 5 against the Celtics about adjustments being meaningless, considering the lack of energy his team brought to Game 4.—
Tony Jones,
New York Times,
11 May 2026
Adjective
-
Bainbridge knew about secrets and unreasoning shame.—
Christopher Tayler,
Harpers Magazine,
27 Jan. 2026
-
Let sound political prescience but take the place of an unreasoning prejudice, and this will be done.—
Frederick Douglass,
The Atlantic,
16 Aug. 2017
Cite this Entry
“Surreal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/surreal. Accessed 14 May. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
