ethereal

Also ae·the·re·al

[ih-theer-ee-uhl]

adjective

1. light, airy, or tenuous.

   an ethereal world created through the poetic imagination.

2. extremely delicate or refined.

   ethereal beauty.

3. heavenly or celestial.

   gone to his ethereal home.

4. of or relating to the upper regions of space.

5. Chemistry.,  pertaining to, containing, or resembling ether.

ethereal

/ ɪˈθɪərɪəl /

adjective

1. extremely delicate or refined; exquisite

2. almost as light as air; impalpable; airy

3. celestial or spiritual

4. of, containing, or dissolved in an ether, esp diethyl ether

   an ethereal solution

5. of or relating to the ether

Other Word Forms

• ethereality noun
• ethereally adverb
• etherealness noun
• ethereous adjective
• nonethereal adjective
• nonethereally adverb
• nonetherealness noun
• nonethereality noun
• unethereal adjective
• unethereally adverb
• unetherealness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of ethereal¹

First recorded in 1505–15; from Latin aethere(us) (from Greek aithérios ), equivalent to aether- ether + -eus adjective suffix + -al ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of ethereal¹

C16: from Latin aethereus, from Greek aitherios, from aithēr _ether

Example Sentences

It can be breathy and ethereal or a searing flamethrower — and she transforms into an angelic chorus of one when she tracks layers of her own harmonies.

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One that is less about left or right and more about exactly who and what those boys stumble upon inside those ethereal spaces that most parents can’t even find, much less understand.

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One of the 1939 film’s production designers, Jack Martin Smith, said that his instructions were to make Oz “ethereal” and “subdued.”

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It also wouldn’t be a complete Tei Shi album without the thoughtful layering of ethereal beats, most evident in the advance single “Best Be Leaving,” which echoes the essence of legendary dream-pop band Cocteau Twins.

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And further along in the set, an absolutely ethereal “Love and Only Love,” from 1990’s “Ragged Glory,” reminded us “hate is everything you think it is.”

Read more on Salon

Related Words

• airy 
• celestial 
• exquisite 
• ghostly 
• intangible 
• sublime