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Definitions

idea

[ahy-dee-uh, ahy-deeuh] / aɪˈdi ə, aɪˈdiə /


Usage

What are other ways to say idea? The noun idea, although it may refer to thoughts of any degree of seriousness or triviality, is commonly used for mental concepts considered more important or elaborate: We pondered the idea of the fourth dimension. The idea of his arrival frightened me. Thought, which reflects its primary emphasis on the mental process, may denote any concept except the more weighty and elaborate ones: I welcomed his thoughts on the subject. A thought came to him. Conception suggests a thought that seems complete, individual, recent, or somewhat intricate: The architect's conception delighted them. Notion suggests a fleeting, vague, or imperfect thought: a bare notion of how to proceed.

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.

See Examples For:

This supports a developing idea that early animals may have first appeared in offshore, deep marine environments before gradually spreading into shallower coastal waters.

From Science Daily Aug. 6, 2026

Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands Governor David Apatang said the idea had caused great unease across the tropical island chain of some 40,000 people.

From Barron's Aug. 6, 2026

All that said, is it a bad idea?

From The Wall Street Journal Aug. 6, 2026

The team manager for the Ugandan Commonwealth Games team has told BBC Scotland News he has no idea why four boxers with the team have vanished.

From BBC Aug. 5, 2026

I’d had no idea he was in the house.

From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom

Now I’ll hand things over to my colleagues, who have some ideas for how you might enjoy the rest of your night.

From Slate Aug. 5, 2026

They listed their ideas on hedging those risks.

From MarketWatch Aug. 4, 2026

Shareholders have some ideas on how to close that gap.

From The Wall Street Journal Aug. 4, 2026

I play enough to convey my musical ideas.

From Los Angeles Times Aug. 4, 2026

So while I agreed with most of what he said, I was thinking he might want to reconsider one of his ideas.

From "Ida B" by Katherine Hannigan




Vocabulary lists containing idea


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