imaginary

[ih-maj-uh-ner-ee] / ɪˈmædʒ əˌnɛr i /

ADJECTIVE

fictitious, invented

Synonyms

STRONGEST

abstract fanciful fantastic fictional hypothetical imagined theoretical unreal whimsical

STRONG

ideal visionary

WEAK

apocryphal apparitional assumed chimerical deceptive delusive dreamed-up dreamlike dreamy fabulous fancied figmental fool's paradise hallucinatory illusive illusory imaginative legendary made-up mythological nonexistent notional phantasmal phantasmic quixotic shadowy spectral supposed supposititious trumped-up unsubstantial

Antonyms

STRONGEST

factual ordinary proven real

STRONG

practical

WEAK

existing genuine physical substantial true

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.

Dahlia Lithwick: If you put “American politics as usual” in some imaginary halcyon past at 1 and Watergate at 10, where’s this slush fund scandal registering for you?

From Slate • May 26, 2026

As the imaginary train whisks the puppets around the country, the show manages to build anticipation just by making the crowd wonder what comes next.

From Los Angeles Times • May 20, 2026

The writer bashes imaginary feminists who supposedly tell women that caring about appearance is “some kind of intellectual failure.”

From Salon • May 8, 2026

This unstable, indeterminate flickering sensation is what Mr. Lerner wants to evoke as he maneuvers his stories between the polarities of the real and the imaginary.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 31, 2026

The imaginary strings holding my heart in place start to snap.

From "The Last Cuentista" by Donna Barba Higuera

Vocabulary lists containing imaginary

List 1

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Common Core Grade 6, List 4

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Common Core Grade 5, List 4

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