fanciful

adjective

fan·​ci·​ful ˈfan(t)-si-fəl How to pronounce fanciful (audio)
1
: marked by fancy or unrestrained imagination rather than by reason and experience
a fanciful person
a fanciful tale of a monster in the woods
2
: existing in fancy (see fancy entry 2) only
a fanciful notion
the falsehoods about some fanciful secret treatiesF. D. Roosevelt
3
: marked by or as if by fancy or whim
gave their children fanciful names
fancifully adverb
fancifulness noun
Choose the Right Synonym for fanciful

imaginary, fanciful, visionary, fantastic, chimerical, quixotic mean unreal or unbelievable.

imaginary applies to something which is fictitious and purely the product of one's imagination.

an imaginary desert isle

fanciful suggests the free play of the imagination.

a teller of fanciful stories

visionary stresses impracticality or incapability of realization.

visionary schemes

fantastic implies incredibility or strangeness beyond belief.

a fantastic world inhabited by monsters

chimerical combines the implication of visionary and fantastic.

chimerical dreams of future progress

quixotic implies a devotion to romantic or chivalrous ideals unrestrained by ordinary prudence and common sense.

a quixotic crusade

Examples of fanciful in a Sentence

a fanciful tale of a monster in the woods They gave all their children fanciful names.
Recent Examples on the Web The dessert was a fanciful interpretation of a Snickers bar. Detroit Free Press, 6 Mar. 2024 The notion that someone outside his family could talk Mr. Biden into stepping aside has always been a fanciful one. Peter Baker, New York Times, 2 Mar. 2024 This biz brainstorms fanciful flavors—such as vanilla bean ice cream perfumed with a hint of jasmine and lychee jellies; mellow jackfruit cream with lightly roasted chili cashew nuts; and mango ice cream with peach-mango fruit swirls and pie crust crunch. Laura Manske, Forbes, 1 Mar. 2024 Throughout the space, beautiful design touches — from the entrance desk porthole to the fanciful wire fish that swim above the guests — enhance but never overwhelm the space. Linda Zavoral, The Mercury News, 26 Feb. 2024 The oblong vestibule is lined in a fanciful fabric of de Castellane’s design, based on the 18th-century French craze for singerie, decorative motifs depicting anthropomorphic monkeys. Ellie Pithers, Vogue, 20 Feb. 2024 The fantasy worlds filled with fanciful proportions and shapes offer more imagination and expansion than the standard silhouette. Cierra Black, Essence, 14 Feb. 2024 Some are more fanciful, such as an array of steel moon sculptures by the artist Jeff Koons. IEEE Spectrum, 15 Feb. 2024 Johns co-starred with Richard Burton, Elizabeth Taylor and Peter O’Toole in Under Milk Wood (1972), an adaptation of Dylan Thomas’ fanciful story about the village of Llareggub. Mike Barnes, The Hollywood Reporter, 4 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'fanciful.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1627, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of fanciful was circa 1627

Dictionary Entries Near fanciful

Cite this Entry

“Fanciful.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fanciful. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

fanciful

adjective
fan·​ci·​ful ˈfan(t)-si-fəl How to pronounce fanciful (audio)
1
: having or showing free imagination rather than reason
a fanciful person
a fanciful tale
2
: existing in fancy only
a fanciful notion
fancifully adverb
fancifulness noun

More from Merriam-Webster on fanciful

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