practical

[prak-ti-kuhl]

adjective

1. of or relating to practice or action.

   practical mathematics.

   Synonyms: pragmatic

2. consisting of, involving, or resulting from practice or action.

   a practical application of a rule.

3. of, relating to, or concerned with ordinary activities, business, or work.

   a habitual dreamer, who can't be bothered with practical affairs.

4. adapted or designed for actual use; useful.

   practical instructions.

5. engaged or experienced in actual practice or work.

   a practical politician credited with much legislation.

6. inclined toward or fitted for actual work or useful activities.

   looking for a practical person to fill this position.

7. mindful of the results, usefulness, advantages or disadvantages, etc., of action or procedure.

   Antonyms: foolish, unwise, imprudent, ill-advised

8. matter-of-fact; prosaic.

9. being such in practice or effect; virtual.

   Her promotion to manager is a practical certainty.

10. Theater.,  practicable.

practical

/ ˈpræktɪkəl /

adjective

1. of, involving, or concerned with experience or actual use; not theoretical

2. of or concerned with ordinary affairs, work, etc

3. adapted or adaptable for use

4. of, involving, or trained by practice

5. being such for all useful or general purposes; virtual

noun

1. an examination in the practical skills of a subject

   a science practical

Usage

A distinction is usually made between practical and practicable. Practical refers to a person, idea, project, etc, as being more concerned with or relevant to practice than theory: he is a very practical person; the idea had no practical application. Practicable refers to a project or idea as being capable of being done or put into effect: the plan was expensive, yet practicable

Other Word Forms

• practicality noun
• practicalness noun
• nonpractical adjective
• nonpractically adverb
• nonpracticalness noun
• prepractical adjective
• quasi-practical adjective
• quasi-practically adverb
• semipractical adjective
• ultrapractical adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of practical¹

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English. See practic, -al ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of practical¹

C17: from earlier practic, from French pratique, via Late Latin from Greek praktikos, from prassein to experience, negotiate, perform

Idioms and Phrases

see to all intents and (for all practical) purposes.

Synonym Study

Practical, judicious, sensible refer to good judgment in action, conduct, and the handling of everyday matters. Practical suggests the ability to adopt means to an end or to turn what is at hand to account: to adopt practical measures for settling problems. Judicious implies the possession and use of discreet judgment, discrimination, and balance: a judicious use of one's time. Sensible implies the possession and use of sound reason and shrewd common sense: a sensible suggestion.

Example Sentences

Simply adding more supercomputer cores is not a practical solution, as energy use becomes excessive and efficiency drops as more cores are added.

Read more on Science Daily

In practical terms for us today, this means it is unconstitutional for the IRS to exercise audit power over religious groups, which would make taxing them all but impossible.

Read more on Salon

Organised by West Northamptonshire Council, the events will bring together organisations to provide practical help, from home energy efficiency to debt advice - and mental health support.

Read more on BBC

At Chicago State University, a group of students is bypassing practical tips on job hunting in favor of lessons on building significant wealth.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Even so, the successful demonstration of a stable, efficient, and scalable prototype represents an important step toward practical applications.

Read more on Science Daily

Related Words

• businesslike 
• constructive 
• down-to-earth 
• efficient 
• factual 
• feasible 
• functional 
• possible 
• practicable 
• pragmatic 
• rational 
• reasonable 
• sane 
• sensible 
• sober 
• workable