as in simple
functioning outside the area of conscious awareness but acting to influence one's thoughts or feelings
A subliminal image was embedded in the advertisement. The subliminal sounds supposedly aid in getting to sleep, but I am skeptical.
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Recent Examples of subliminal
Beliefs and routines tug at one another as the subliminal Moon in your 9th House of Expansion squares companionable Venus in your 6th House of Work.
—
Tarot.com, Baltimore Sun, 25 Feb. 2026
The subliminal message between the two cover shots didn’t go unnoticed.
—Evan Grant, Dallas Morning News, 23 Feb. 2026
The creature’s journey from animal to man is more subtle than a straightforward erasure of the animal sounds, as Robitaille wanted the shift to feel natural and subliminal.
—Jim Hemphill, IndieWire, 20 Feb. 2026
The only other major drama the documentary spends any length of time with is the notorious 1990 trial in which the band was accused of putting subliminal messages in a song after the double suicide of two young men.
—Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 19 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for subliminal
Tarot.com, Baltimore Sun, 25 Feb. 2026
The subliminal message between the two cover shots didn’t go unnoticed.
—Evan Grant, Dallas Morning News, 23 Feb. 2026
The creature’s journey from animal to man is more subtle than a straightforward erasure of the animal sounds, as Robitaille wanted the shift to feel natural and subliminal.
—Jim Hemphill, IndieWire, 20 Feb. 2026
The only other major drama the documentary spends any length of time with is the notorious 1990 trial in which the band was accused of putting subliminal messages in a song after the double suicide of two young men.
—Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 19 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for subliminal
Recent Examples of Synonyms for subliminal
Adjective
-
The useful answer may be simpler than expected once the real priority becomes obvious.—
Tarot.com,
Hartford Courant,
14 May 2026
-
The decor with sheepskin rugs and arm lamps for reading lights is neither flashy nor overtly quirky, but simple and homey, as if it were designed by a tasteful Scandinavian grandmother who relocated to the wilds of Patagonia.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
14 May 2026
Adjective
-
Rescuing utopian idyll from dystopian reality, Koreeda determines that humanity is too fragile to forfeit its defining qualities to a mechanical species; that our only viable function in an artificial tomorrow is as the eternal caretakers of memory and imagination.—
David Ehrlich,
IndieWire,
16 May 2026
-
Does my insurance cover a mechanical breakdown?—
Christopher Elliott,
Forbes.com,
16 May 2026
Adjective
-
Robots learn cloth folding Alongside the digital twin technology, FANUC demonstrated a dual-arm robotic system that learns to fold T-shirts using NVIDIA’s Isaac GR00T N robot foundation model.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
15 May 2026
-
The robotic Tianzhou 10 cargo ship lifted off atop a Long March 7 rocket from the Wenchang Space Launch Site on China’s Hainan Island on Sunday.—
Stephen Clark,
ArsTechnica,
15 May 2026
Adjective
-
While Naverrette flawlessly plays Nikki as being possessed by a sinister spirit who’s obsessed with Bear, her performance also includes tortured outbursts as the real Nikki sporadically breaks free from her subconscious to react in horror as her friend takes advantage of the situation.—
Glenn Garner,
Deadline,
15 May 2026
-
Sometimes, the frame is transfixed by haunting, practically subliminal changes fomenting on a subconscious level, as Dua is shaken from within, and the remarkable Matoshi doles out nuggets of recognizable emotion from beneath her rock-hard exterior.—
Siddhant Adlakha,
Variety,
13 May 2026
Adjective
-
Eva Petzel, who will be an inspector working in Crown Point on election day, worked with mechanic Doug Kiser on a practice tutorial at the Lake County Government Complex on Saturday.—
Deborah Laverty,
Chicago Tribune,
4 May 2026
-
Voters will decide in November on whether the union leader and mechanic stays in the seat ahead of the 2027 legislative session.—
Lina Ruiz
May 1,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
1 May 2026
Adjective
-
This disrupts unconscious bias in real-time.—
Carolina Guardiola Romo,
Forbes.com,
18 May 2026
-
The investigation revealed Samnath was left at the hospital unconscious in a wheelchair Television Jamaica (TVJ) previously reported.—
Samira Asma-Sadeque,
PEOPLE,
18 May 2026
Adjective
-
Wyle listened to the two women’s breathing and administered a reflex test on their knees.—
Ethan Shanfeld,
Variety,
8 May 2026
-
That reflex delays care and erodes trust.—
Liz Koch,
STAT,
6 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Their experience reveals the hidden realities of the organization's operations.—
Tracy Lawrence,
Forbes.com,
18 May 2026
-
Rent one from Sea Panarea to discover hidden coves, sea caves, and the nearby islets of Basiluzzo and Lisca before settling in for sunset Negronis at the see-and-be-seen Bar del Porto.—
Nicky Swallow,
Travel + Leisure,
17 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Subliminal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/subliminal. Accessed 20 May. 2026.
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