as in fictitious
not real and existing only in the imagination
the events in the horror movie seemed so real to some fans that they could not believe that the whole thing was fictional
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of fictional
Christened Celia, the whimsical carriage was inspired by a fictional muse from Luhrmann’s imagination but also pays homage to London’s 1930s West End theatre scene, vintage cinema, and Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
—
Rachel Cormack, Robb Report, 10 Feb. 2026
Shriver focuses most of her fictional energies on characters who are more generously, and more plausibly, drawn and thus more deserving of her—and our—interest.
—Adelle Waldman, The Atlantic, 10 Feb. 2026
The series finale, which literally burned down half the fictional world as fans knew it, was largely panned and today sits at 47 percent on Rotten Tomatoes.
—Amy Wilkinson, Entertainment Weekly, 10 Feb. 2026
In Warga’s fictional world, ghosts come to life and help solve a mystery.
—Mary Ann Grossmann, Twin Cities, 8 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for fictional
Rachel Cormack, Robb Report, 10 Feb. 2026
Shriver focuses most of her fictional energies on characters who are more generously, and more plausibly, drawn and thus more deserving of her—and our—interest.
—Adelle Waldman, The Atlantic, 10 Feb. 2026
The series finale, which literally burned down half the fictional world as fans knew it, was largely panned and today sits at 47 percent on Rotten Tomatoes.
—Amy Wilkinson, Entertainment Weekly, 10 Feb. 2026
In Warga’s fictional world, ghosts come to life and help solve a mystery.
—Mary Ann Grossmann, Twin Cities, 8 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for fictional
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fictional
Adjective
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Comulate also invented a fictitious insurance agent named Jordan Bates, who purported to work for PBC and who interacted with Applied Systems salespeople through email (with a Phoenix Benefits email domain) to create a customer account on Applied’s Epic.—
John Hyatt,
Forbes.com,
30 Jan. 2026
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In a comparable case in the United States in 2023, a federal judge imposed $5,000 fines on two lawyers and a law firm after ChatGPT was blamed for their submission of fictitious legal research in an aviation injury claim.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
27 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Finally, the researchers did another version of the original test but used imaginary grapes instead of juice, with similar results.—
Evan Bush,
NBC news,
5 Feb. 2026
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Unfortunately, the new love in your life may be imaginary and only after your bank account.—
C. A. Bridges,
Florida Times-Union,
4 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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The series follows a teenage boy who forms an unlikely alliance with the Fairy Queen of Celtic lore to search for malevolent mythical creatures from around the world, among them the Yeti, Baba Yaga and a Lady Dracula — not to destroy them, but to save them from impending doom.—
Ed Meza,
Variety,
13 Feb. 2026
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Jones portrays the fierce warrior Prince Vlad of Wallachia, who goes on to become the mythical Dracula.—
Hanna Wickes,
Kansas City Star,
13 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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The experiments together suggest that Kanzi was able to distinguish an imagined scenario from the present reality and keep both in mind.—
Evan Bush,
NBC news,
5 Feb. 2026
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So, the transactional world is constantly pushing us out of the present and redirecting us to an imagined future.—
Bill Burnett,
Big Think,
5 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Fictional.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fictional. Accessed 14 Feb. 2026.
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