quixotic

Sometimes quix·ot·i·cal

[kwik-sot-ik]

adjective

1. (of a goal, action, or impulse) characterized by impractical idealism or by extravagant chivalry and romantic imagination.

   Synonyms: imaginary, fantastic, fanciful
   Antonyms: practical, realistic

2. impulsive, overeager, or capricious.

3. (sometimes initial capital letter),  resembling or befitting Don Quixote.

quixotic

/ ˈkwɪksəˌtɪzəm, kwɪkˈsɒtɪk /

adjective

1. preoccupied with an unrealistically optimistic or chivalrous approach to life; impractically idealistic

Other Word Forms

• quixotically adverb
• quixotism noun
• half-quixotic adjective
• half-quixotically adverb
• unquixotic adjective
• unquixotical adjective
• unquixotically adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of quixotic¹

First recorded in 1805–15; (Don) Quixote + -ic

Word History and Origins

Origin of quixotic¹

C18: after _{Don Quixote}

Example Sentences

What the film shows us, in what seems a very honest if impressionistic depiction, is that most of the world was not necessarily obsessed with rock and pop and quixotic campaigns to change the world.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Chenoweth, who is as gleaming as a holiday ornament on Liberace’s Christmas tree, arrives at a canny balance of quixotic generosity and parvenu carelessness in her portrayal of a woman she refuses to lampoon.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

In practice, this meant backing a quixotic bid for president by a now-forgotten opposition lawmaker, while at the same imposing a harsh set of economic sanctions on Venezuela’s oil industry, the lifeblood of the economy.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

And though he’s undeniably quixotic, PTA’s relentless urgency consistently overrides the sticky trappings of saccharine sentimentality that would snare less ambitious filmmakers.

Read more on Salon

Here, it’s employed to accentuate the small-town sunniness of the place along with its buzz and sweat, emphasizing Lee’s quixotic trust in the inevitability of truth.

Read more on Salon

Related Words

• dreamy 
• foolish 
• impractical 
• impulsive 
• romantic 
• unrealistic 
• utopian