as in imaginary
formal
based on something that is not true or real; based on an illusion
an illusory hope an illusory sense of security
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Recent Examples of illusory
Despite the book’s suggestive title, the landscape is anything but illusory for Abbott, who grew up in Grosse Pointe and spent the first 18 years of her life there.
—
Jim Ruland, Los Angeles Times, 19 June 2025
Wells’s attempt to hold the two in balance relied on a division between art and politics, but that division is entirely illusory.
—Kamila Shamsie
june 20, Literary Hub, 20 June 2025
Freedom without effective enforcement is illusory, as history repeatedly demonstrates.
—Ed Gaskin, Boston Herald, 18 June 2025
The viewer doesn’t hold all that much sway over Stefan’s outcomes, but the illusory nature of free will is part of the point Bandersnatch is trying to make.
—Charles Bramesco, Vulture, 10 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for illusory
Jim Ruland, Los Angeles Times, 19 June 2025
Wells’s attempt to hold the two in balance relied on a division between art and politics, but that division is entirely illusory.
—Kamila Shamsie
june 20, Literary Hub, 20 June 2025
Freedom without effective enforcement is illusory, as history repeatedly demonstrates.
—Ed Gaskin, Boston Herald, 18 June 2025
The viewer doesn’t hold all that much sway over Stefan’s outcomes, but the illusory nature of free will is part of the point Bandersnatch is trying to make.
—Charles Bramesco, Vulture, 10 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for illusory
Recent Examples of Synonyms for illusory
Adjective
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Is all this merely a sci-fi imaginary consideration?—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
19 July 2025
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And yes, it will be displayed, but mercifully, not in an imaginary basement.—
Ana Gutierrez,
Austin American Statesman,
18 July 2025
Adjective
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Richardson was the 4th overall pick in the NFL Draft, which should give him another opportunity to start over Daniel Jones and also showcase his unreal upside.—
Steve Bradshaw,
Forbes.com,
29 July 2025
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Victoria Falls is such an incredibly special and beautiful place, so to be so completely surrounded by and immersed in the falls was unreal.—
Soo Kim,
MSNBC Newsweek,
23 July 2025
Adjective
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Gallup opinion polling has found that Americans’ ideal number of children per family has averaged about 2.5 since the late 1970s, even as the actual fertility rate has fallen much lower.—
New York Times,
New York Times,
24 July 2025
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During our tests, Fox found these hiking socks to be an ideal height, coming over the top of her hiking boots without being too tall.—
Lauren Breedlove,
Travel + Leisure,
24 July 2025
Adjective
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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
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Mercury entering into Pisces turns up the imaginal juice.—
USA TODAY,
USA TODAY,
23 Feb. 2024
Adjective
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The state has argued that Black would be unconscious and unlikely to feel pain.—
Kelly Puente,
Nashville Tennessean,
30 July 2025
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However, evidence suggests that consistently getting it right over the long term is extremely unlikely.—
Rory O'Hara,
Forbes.com,
30 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Illusory.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/illusory. Accessed 5 Aug. 2025.
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