formal

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

“While a memoir or formal autobiography aims to offer a retrospective story, the diary typically doesn’t, or can’t, because it is written from the middle of an unfolding life.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 6, 2026

This categorization didn’t constitute a formal regulation; rather the agency was using its discretion not to go after compounders who used ingredients it deemed safe — those from the first category.

From Salon • Apr. 4, 2026

Instead, he gave a marginally more formal “update” about progress in Iran than he gives all day on social media or in quick press availabilities.

From Slate • Apr. 4, 2026

Wanting a garden that was easy to use and colorful year-round, Smee contacted landscape designer Guillaume Lemoine of Picture This Land to help design a formal French garden using California native plants.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 30, 2026

Kennedy and his advisers then turned to Nikita Khrushchev’s letter—the Soviet leader’s formal response to Kennedy’s televised speech of the night before.

From "Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown" by Steve Sheinkin