cerebral
Americanadjective
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Anatomy, Zoology. of or relating to the cerebrum or the brain.
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betraying or characterized by the use of the intellect rather than intuition or instinct.
His is a cerebral music that leaves many people cold.
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Phonetics. retroflex.
noun
adjective
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of or relating to the cerebrum or to the entire brain
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involving intelligence rather than emotions or instinct
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phonetics another word for cacuminal
noun
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The term is also used figuratively to describe things that appeal to the intellect.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of cerebral
From the New Latin word cerebrālis, dating back to 1795–1805. See cerebrum, -al 1
Explanation
If you are a cerebral person, no one would ever call you a drama queen. You make decisions using your intelligence and cold, hard facts, instead of your emotions. The word cerebral gets its meaning from cerebrum, which is Latin for "brain." Cerebral people use their brains instead of their hearts. The cerebrum is a particular section of the brain, and anything related to that part is also cerebral, like in medicine. A cerebral hemorrhage, for example, means a hemorrhage has occurred in the brain — a phrase you'd never want to hear coming from a doctor.
Vocabulary lists containing cerebral
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian
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30 GRE Words Beginning with "B" & "C"
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Flowers for Algernon
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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.
Schrager, who has cerebral palsy, said the impact on her mental health has been "significant and at times overwhelming" - but vowed she would return to action in 2027.
From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026
Shriver added that Jovic can learn from Pegula’s cerebral approach, while veterans like Pegula can tap into a fresh mindset from the younger generation’s unflinching energy.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 4, 2026
That all changed in 2023 after Freese was traded to NYCFC, where the club came to learn it had acquired an unusually cerebral player, whose mind never stops racing.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 25, 2026
As the brain develops, newly formed neurons must travel through tightly packed tissue to reach their final destinations in the cerebral cortex, where they become part of the brain's communication network.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 21, 2026
The fair was a “contagion,” a “virus,” a form of “progressive cerebral meningitis.”
From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson
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.
