1
as in bizarre
conceived or made without regard for reason or reality
she harbors the fanciful notion that she has a talent for singing
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2
as in mythic
not real and existing only in the imagination
the fanciful creatures that J.R.R. Tolkien created for his Middle Earth novels
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Recent Examples of fanciful
But his standing quickly unraveled as he was exposed for a slew of fanciful lies during his campaign about his background.
—
Elizabeth Crisp, The Hill, 9 May 2025
As the United States diverts resources toward fanciful efforts to defend its homeland against China’s comparatively low-cost attack capabilities, Beijing effectively strains U.S. resources at little cost to itself.
—Tong Zhao, Foreign Affairs, 2 May 2025
But catastrophes have a way of focusing attention on solutions that might once have been dismissed as fanciful or impossible.
—Margaret MacMillan, The Atlantic, 30 Apr. 2025
However, a fanciful title charge would collapse in November and early December in a period where Spurs picked up one point from five league matches.
—Elias Burke, New York Times, 30 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for fanciful
Elizabeth Crisp, The Hill, 9 May 2025
As the United States diverts resources toward fanciful efforts to defend its homeland against China’s comparatively low-cost attack capabilities, Beijing effectively strains U.S. resources at little cost to itself.
—Tong Zhao, Foreign Affairs, 2 May 2025
But catastrophes have a way of focusing attention on solutions that might once have been dismissed as fanciful or impossible.
—Margaret MacMillan, The Atlantic, 30 Apr. 2025
However, a fanciful title charge would collapse in November and early December in a period where Spurs picked up one point from five league matches.
—Elias Burke, New York Times, 30 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for fanciful
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fanciful
Adjective
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Joining me is my Staten Island brother, Pete Davidson, who unveils a darker, dramatic side as his character navigates a bizarre group of residents in an old age home.—
Etan Vlessing,
HollywoodReporter,
29 May 2025
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Part of that stems from fewer bizarre storytelling choices (good!), and part of it is a byproduct of an overly cautious attitude toward character development (bad).—
Ben Travers,
IndieWire,
28 May 2025
Adjective
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Read it because existence is absurd, and laughter might be the most intelligent response available.—
Newsweek Staff,
MSNBC Newsweek,
28 May 2025
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One thing that’s been a challenge to satirists in the last 10 years is that reality has become so absurd, with the dumbest possible things happening every day, that there doesn’t always seem to be another level for satire to go to.—
Alan Sepinwall,
Rolling Stone,
28 May 2025
Adjective
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The Scheme To carry out the fraud scheme, the defendants and their co-conspirators created fictitious employers and lists of alleged employees—those lists were generated using personally identifiable information (PII) gleaned from thousands of identity theft victims.—
Kelly Phillips Erb,
Forbes.com,
23 May 2025
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When Noah Wyle reunited with ER producers John Wells and R. Scott Gemmill to make HBO Max’s The Pitt, the plan was to offer a realistic portrayal of healthcare today through the lens of harried pros working in a fictitious Pittsburgh hospital.—
Nellie Andreeva,
Deadline,
20 May 2025
Adjective
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To write off the Israeli leader would be foolish, especially with new elections not required until late 2026.—
Yair Rosenberg,
The Atlantic,
22 May 2025
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His writing is so human—his people are foolish in such human ways.—
The New Yorker,
New Yorker,
21 May 2025
Adjective
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Draw an imaginary line from the magnitude 2.3 star Merak, which forms the outer base of the 'bowl', through Dubhe, the star positioned as the 'pouring tip' of the asterism.—
Anthony Wood,
Space.com,
20 May 2025
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The mastermind behind covert action, Frank Wisner, never paused to consider that his cure for defeating an imaginary worldwide communist conspiracy was worse than the disease.—
Bruce Fein,
Baltimore Sun,
15 May 2025
Adjective
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What makes the book so extraordinary is that is functions as a de facto catalogue for a mythical Rolex museum, chock full of images of timepieces from every Rolex era, dating to 1908, three years after the brand was founded.—
Victoria Gomelsky,
Robb Report,
26 May 2025
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The mythical creature is said to be the origin of the first Vietnamese people.—
Jenna Thompson,
Kansas City Star,
23 May 2025
Adjective
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By 2028, Hunter should be bigger and stronger, traits that will complement his unreal combination of speed and athleticism.—
Tashan Reed,
New York Times,
21 May 2025
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The pressure to succeed is completely overwhelming, and the constant comparison to something that is unreal can become too much for anyone.—
Suzanne Blake,
MSNBC Newsweek,
14 May 2025
Adjective
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Set on the fictional New England island of New Penzance in the 1960s, Sam (Jared Gilman), an emotionally disturbed orphan, and Suzy (Kara Hayward), a sophisticated, yet troubled girl in the vein of Margot Tenenbaum, long to grow up and get away from the chaos that surrounds them.—
Shannon Carlin,
Time,
30 May 2025
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Artificial intelligence, virtual reality, self-driving cars — these were all fictional concepts that have since crossed the threshold from imagination to innovation.—
Dete Meserve,
Space.com,
29 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Fanciful.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fanciful. Accessed 3 Jun. 2025.
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