aspirational
Americanadjective
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relating to or characterized by aspiration or a strong desire for something.
their aspirational goals for the New Year.
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aimed at or appealing to people who want to attain a higher social position or standard of living.
a magazine featuring aspirational products for the home.
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Medicine/Medical. relating to the act of removing a fluid from a body cavity or of inhaling a fluid into the lungs.
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Phonetics. relating to articulation involving an audible puff of breath.
Etymology
Origin of aspirational
Explanation
Aspirational things are ambitious, like a goal you're aiming for. Your dreams of being a famous movie star are certainly aspirational, although maybe a little unrealistic. The adjective aspirational can simply describe your objectives or goals in life: in other words, the things you aspire to do. However, the word often implies a desire to achieve social status. If you think of aspirational social media accounts, which give snapshots of impossibly glamorous or wealthy lifestyles, you get the idea. The Latin root of aspirational is aspirare, which means both "to reach for" and "to breathe."
Vocabulary lists containing aspirational
The Sherlock Society
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Where You See Yourself
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The Dubious Pranks of Shaindy Goodman
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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.
In a landscape littered with teenage dysfunction, Netflix’s ‘Don’t Say Good Luck’ is a moving argument for aspirational television.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 27, 2026
Most of these pacts are aspirational, but one important exception is California’s “linkage agreement” with Quebec.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026
What was once an "aspirational category has now become a daily expression of self-care" for many young Indians, she says.
From BBC ● Aug. 19, 2026
Behind them, cookbooks line the shelves, fruit has been arranged decoratively across the counters and every surface gleams with aspirational domestic ease.
From Salon ● Aug. 5, 2026
My father’s habit of driving us through Pill Hill was a bit of an aspirational exercise, I would guess, a chance to show us what a good education could yield.
From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama
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.
