fanciful
Americanadjective
-
not based on fact; dubious or imaginary
fanciful notions
-
made or designed in a curious, intricate, or imaginative way
-
indulging in or influenced by fancy; whimsical
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of fanciful
Explanation
Turn fanciful around and you get "full of fancy," which gives you the gist of the meaning. The adjective refers to something not quite real, usually something with a whimsical or even dreamlike quality. The adjective fanciful sprang from the 15th-century noun fancy, which was in turn a short version of the word fantasy. All three words contain the same elemental meaning, that of something unreal. Someone who is fanciful usually allows creative thought rather than the practical to come to the forefront. Edgar Allan Poe said, "It will be found, in fact, that the ingenious are always fanciful, and the truly imaginative never otherwise than analytic."
Vocabulary lists containing fanciful
The New SAT: Words to Capture Tone
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The SAT: Words to Capture Tone, List 6
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30 GRE Words Beginning with "E" and "F"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Mr. Riley, the managing editor of the New Criterion, is the author of “The Bridges of Robert Adam: A Fanciful and Picturesque Tour.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 23, 2026
Fanciful water-diversion schemes have been around for half a century.
From Washington Post • Jun. 9, 2021
Two other categories were “Misleading Vagueness and Fanciful Details” and “Inventing Straw Men,” particularly the media.
From Salon • Feb. 24, 2019
Fanciful, farcical adventures in home economics in Sedaris’ first starring series since “Strangers With Candy.”
From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 8, 2017
Madam, here's my Lady Fanciful to wait upon your ladyship.
From History of English Humour, Vol. 1 With an Introduction upon Ancient Humour by L'Estrange, Alfred Guy Kingan
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
