meaningful

adjective

mean·​ing·​ful ˈmē-niŋ-fəl How to pronounce meaningful (audio)
1
a
: having a meaning or purpose
The tests did not produce any meaningful results.
b
: full of meaning : significant
a meaningful life
a meaningful relationship
2
: having an assigned function in a language system
meaningful propositions
meaningfully adverb
meaningfulness noun

Examples of meaningful in a Sentence

The test did not produce any meaningful results. She looked at him in a meaningful way. He wanted to feel that his job was meaningful. The trip turned out to be very meaningful for both of them.
Recent Examples on the Web Rather than being a cause for skepticism, the presence of such an agenda makes the result all the more meaningful. Peter Debruge, Variety, 14 Mar. 2024 Provide student-athletes a meaningful role in governance at the conference and NCAA levels. 9. Jon Wilner, The Mercury News, 14 Mar. 2024 But a rigged contest marks the death of democracy and renders all the other essential pillars irrelevant, because the people no longer have a meaningful say over who governs. Brian Klaas, The Atlantic, 14 Mar. 2024 Of the four, the New York case was the only one with a meaningful start date, and that suddenly appeared in doubt Thursday. Devlin Barrett, Washington Post, 14 Mar. 2024 One wonders, too, what value RFK, Jr. could have added to a convention of proudly unvaccinated people acting like they’ve been canceled in any meaningful sense — besides bigger crowds, that is. Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 12 Mar. 2024 The students were divided into four teams, with each team charge to find a muse/collaborator within their respective category — to ensure primary research and a meaningful outcome. Lyn Slater, CNN, 12 Mar. 2024 Shifting the conversation towards a solution is more likely to lead to a meaningful discussion, Dr. Romanoff says, and less likely to result in an argument. Jenna Ryu, SELF, 12 Mar. 2024 Oceanside’s population sample might be too small to allow for a meaningful conclusion, given the way the census’ survey works. Roxana Popescu, San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 Mar. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'meaningful.' 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

1852, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of meaningful was in 1852

Dictionary Entries Near meaningful

Cite this Entry

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

Kids Definition

meaningful

adjective
mean·​ing·​ful ˈmē-niŋ-fəl How to pronounce meaningful (audio)
1
: having a meaning or purpose
meaningful work
2
: full of meaning : significant
a meaningful experience
meaningfully adverb

More from Merriam-Webster on meaningful

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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