frontal
Americanadjective
-
of, in, or at the front.
a frontal view; frontal attack.
-
Anatomy.
-
of, relating to, or situated near the forehead or the frontal bone.
-
-
Meteorology. of or relating to the division between dissimilar air masses.
frontal zone; frontal surface.
-
Fine Arts.
-
exhibiting frontality.
-
parallel to the surface in the pictorial arts or seen from the front view in sculpture.
the frontal plane.
-
noun
-
Ecclesiastical. a movable cover or hanging for the front of an altar.
-
Anatomy. any of several parts in the frontal region, especially the frontal bone.
adjective
-
of, at, or in the front
-
of or relating to the forehead
frontal artery
-
of or relating to the anterior part of a body or organ
-
meteorol of, relating to, or resulting from a front or its passage
frontal rainfall
noun
-
a decorative hanging for the front of an altar
-
another name for frontlet
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of frontal
1275–1325; < Late Latin frontālis ( New Latin, in anatomy sense); replacing Middle English frountel < Old French frontel. See front, -al 1
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.
Using a specialist pressure sensor positioned within the model, they observed a distinctive pressure wave that transfers energy into the frontal region of the brain for the first time.
From BBC • Apr. 20, 2026
What he did and how he did it is still in the frontal lobe of those who watched and those who wrote and broadcast about him.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 19, 2026
FTD primarily impacts the frontal and temporal regions of the brain, leading to changes in personality, behavior, and language.
From Science Daily • Apr. 9, 2026
"It then pulled away to the east, with a frontal system moving away southwards, opening the floodgates to a cold Arctic plunge of air."
From BBC • Mar. 25, 2026
The frontal lobe, the executive functions, get so overloaded, so taxed, that there are fewer resources left to make a good decision.
From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel
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.
