as in theoretical
dealing with or expressing a quality or idea
ideograms are ideational—they are meant to suggest some general idea and not a particular word or phrase
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of ideational
Constructivists’ major argument is that world politics is as much ideational as material and that relations among states depend on norms as much as on military or economic power.
—
Stacie E. Goddard,
Foreign Affairs,
31 Oct. 2025
These ideational shifts, influenced by both global narratives and local aspirations, are increasingly shaping how Indians approach relationships.
—
Anuradha Gupta,
Forbes.com,
8 Aug. 2025
The ideational content of the image — a man killing another man on a public sidewalk — is only half the message.
—
F.k. Plous,
Chicago Tribune,
8 Jan. 2025
This process, which Doten-Snitker and her coauthors term ideational diffusion, often took many years as people in towns and cities needed time to digest new ideas about witchcraft and turn them into behavior.
—
Kapil Kajal,
Interesting Engineering,
8 Oct. 2024
Steven Spielberg extends Griffith’s and Ford’s historical insight through an astonishing mix of visual and ideational dialectics.
—
Armond White,
National Review,
28 June 2023
Stacie E. Goddard,
Foreign Affairs,
31 Oct. 2025
These ideational shifts, influenced by both global narratives and local aspirations, are increasingly shaping how Indians approach relationships.
—
Anuradha Gupta,
Forbes.com,
8 Aug. 2025
The ideational content of the image — a man killing another man on a public sidewalk — is only half the message.
—
F.k. Plous,
Chicago Tribune,
8 Jan. 2025
This process, which Doten-Snitker and her coauthors term ideational diffusion, often took many years as people in towns and cities needed time to digest new ideas about witchcraft and turn them into behavior.
—
Kapil Kajal,
Interesting Engineering,
8 Oct. 2024
Steven Spielberg extends Griffith’s and Ford’s historical insight through an astonishing mix of visual and ideational dialectics.
—
Armond White,
National Review,
28 June 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ideational
Adjective
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When people see that scams can be built around them specifically, security habits stop feeling theoretical and start feeling necessary.
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After machine learning identified promising candidates, researchers verified them through theoretical calculations before synthesizing and experimentally confirming the materials.
Adjective
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In both the real and metaphysical locations of the show, the backgrounds are all painted by hand, something which was pointed out took up a lot of time due to the number of paintings in the show and due to the number of montages.
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In the 18th century Samuel Johnson coined the term metaphysical poets to criticize Donne, John Cleveland, and Abraham Cowley.
Adjective
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An artist's rendering of development of a conceptual moon base near the lunar south pole.
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The German conceptual artist and painter Rune Mields, who designed her own grave, has died at age 91.
Adjective
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In the June 23 Section A, the obituary for Greenspan said that he was married briefly to abstract artist Joan Mitchell.
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Instead of abstract phishing examples, show employees how much of their own digital footprint is publicly available and how easily fraudsters can turn it into a convincing fake profile, email or message.
Adjective
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This approach is crucial for mitigating downsides and enhancing the benefits of AI for societal mental well-being.
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These holistic mental and physical wellness itineraries incorporate spa treatments and mindfulness modalities such as forest bathing and meditation, private pilates and yoga classes, and food made with organic, sustainable ingredients.
Adjective
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Perhaps unsurprisingly, subsequent attempts at diplomacy, led by the ailing diplomat and intellectual Benjamin Franklin, also proved ineffective.
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After all, even with the growing demands of an aging population and increases in intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDDs), larger numbers of these jobs are already poorly paid.
Cite this Entry
“Ideational.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ideational. Accessed 6 Jul. 2026.
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