imaginal

adjective

i-ˈma-jə-nᵊl How to pronounce imaginal (audio)
Definition of imaginalnext
1
as in graphic
consisting of or relating to pictures after a desensitizing series of imaginal exposures to the feared object, the phobic person is then exposed to the actual object

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in imaginary
not real and existing only in the imagination the equator is merely an imaginal line

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 imaginal Peter [Merry] likes to use is that, when a caterpillar is becoming a butterfly, new ‘imaginal cells’ emerge. — Big Think, 7 Aug. 2025 With one technique, for example—called imaginal exposure—you might be asked to visualize the process of going to the airport, boarding the plane, and experiencing a bad bout of turbulence. — Angela Haupt, TIME, 10 May 2024 Then, from bundles of cells known as imaginal disks, a new body takes form. — Elizabeth Kolbert, The New Yorker, 13 Mar. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for imaginal
  1. graphic
  2. imaginary
  3. visual
  4. mythical
  5. photographic
  6. fictional
  7. pictorial
  8. fictitious
Adjective
  • The cups on display, with sleek forms and graphic twinkles, immediately felt relatable yet also transcendent, the boundary between life and art blissfully obliterated.
    — Emily Watlington, ARTnews.com, 24 Aug. 2026
  • Students may use Venn diagrams or other graphic organizers to take notes.
    — USA Today, USA Today, 24 Aug. 2026
Definition of graphic
Adjective
  • Where travel still leaves room for people The goal isn't to return to some imaginary golden age of travel.
    — Christopher Elliott, USA Today, 28 Aug. 2026
  • There isn’t even a drastic generational shift between that imaginary cast and this film’s actual one.
    — Guy Lodge, Variety, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of imaginary
Adjective
  • The nearly $82,000 purchase will replace obsolete devices that are currently being used in the visual arts department’s graphic design courses.
    — Cam'ron Hardy, Chicago Tribune, 28 Aug. 2026
  • Even if only proverbial, the figure of 330 million gods and goddesses reflects a vast inventory of divine beings found across texts, visual art, and the different towns and regions throughout India.
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of visual
Adjective
  • Morris’s book focuses only on the representation of real animals; cataloguing mythic and hybrid creatures would take another volume entirely.
    — Kelly Presutti, ARTnews.com, 28 Aug. 2026
  • Equally jubilant and terrifying, his size brings both John and Jim Ross to this mythic quality.
    — Charlotte Observer, Charlotte Observer, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of mythical
Adjective
  • The 1970s saw electronic detectors take over for photographic plates, increasing the detector sensitivity by an order of magnitude.
    — Don Figer, The Conversation, 27 Aug. 2026
  • Think 19th century photographic storytellers Julia Margaret Cameron and Oscar Gustave Rejlander.
    — Leah Ollman, Los Angeles Times, 25 Aug. 2026
Definition of photographic
Adjective
  • The first season was filmed in Wales and set in the fictional North Wales village of Morfa Halen.
    — Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 26 Aug. 2026
  • This is where the creation of the aforementioned fictional Barrow’s Green came about, which eventually came to life in the form of The Six Bells Inn.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of fictional
Adjective
  • These pictorial cards also capture scenes along the Fox River, as well as schools, churches, hotels, historic buildings, bridges, the railroad, events and celebrations.
    — Denise Crosby, Chicago Tribune, 5 Aug. 2026
  • It was coined in Japan in the 1990s for small pictorial symbols used in electronic messaging.
    — Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 18 June 2026
Definition of pictorial
Adjective
  • The undercover analyst noted in a message that his fictitious 4-year-old brother would be home the next day, when the Perez meeting was expected.
    — Emerson Clarridge, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 18 Aug. 2026
  • Final testing relied on fictitious data instead of the real records of millions of residents.
    — Komal Goyal, Forbes.com, 12 Aug. 2026
Definition of fictitious

Browse Nearby Words

imaginably
imaginal
imaginary
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Cite this Entry

“Imaginal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/imaginal. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

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