fictitious
adjective
Did you know?
Fictitious is related to the Medieval Latin word fictīcius, meaning "artificial," "imaginary," "feigned," or "fraudulent." It was first used in English as an antonym for natural. For instance, a fake diamond would be referred to as a fictitious one. This use indicates the word's deeper Latin roots: fictīcius is from the Latin verb fingere, meaning "to mold, fashion, make a likeness of; pretend to be." Nowadays, fictitious is no longer used for physical things shaped by the human hand. Rather, it is typically used for imaginative creations or for feigned emotions.
Examples of fictitious in a Sentence
Nick Paton Walsh, CNN, 11 Mar. 2025
The report did not mention any instances of dead or fictitious employees getting paid.
—Laura Doan, CBS News, 27 Feb. 2025
Turning the pope’s election into a trans referendum Hidden within the fake pomp and banal compositions of Conclave is a litany of left-wing nostrums, spoken by fictitious characters during the election of a new pope.
—Armond White, National Review, 19 Feb. 2025
Rankin even uses a logo for his fictitious institute that looks suspiciously like the Iranian one.
—Alissa Wilkinson, New York Times, 13 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for fictitious
Cite this Entry
“Fictitious.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fictitious. Accessed 16 Mar. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
fictitious
adjective
Share