mystical

[mis-ti-kuhl]

adjective

1. mystic; of or relating to supernatural agencies, affairs, occurrences, etc..

   a strange, mystical experience.

2. of or relating to mystics or mysticism.

   mystical writings.

3. spiritually symbolic.

   a mystical vision of the hereafter.

4. obscure in meaning; mysterious.

   mystical circumstances.

mystical

/ ˈmɪstɪkəl /

adjective

1. relating to or characteristic of mysticism

2. Christianity having a divine or sacred significance that surpasses natural human apprehension

3. having occult or metaphysical significance, nature, or force

4. a less common word for mysterious

Other Word Forms

• mystically adverb
• mysticality noun
• mysticalness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of mystical¹

First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English; mystic, -al ¹

Synonym Study

See mysterious.

Example Sentences

For several agonizing minutes, they sit together saying nothing, as Black Sabbath’s mystical ballad “Solitude” plays softly on the stereo.

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I love how the imagination can dance around these ideas, but the rational part of my brain usually wins over the mystical.

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He struck instant sonic gold with this mystical evocation of Hawaii, wondrous in sound, Lanzilotti, a hopeful good start.

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“The Albers’ creative output evokes some mystical idea of live-work balance; it’s easy to imagine them at home, wrapped in the contemplative heat of making things side-by-side.

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What follows will touch on religious and mystical iconography — we’ll meet three lantern-carrying masked figures, for instance, with exaggerated, regal adornments as they herald a birth.

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Related Words

• esoteric 
• magical