intentionality
Americannoun
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the fact or quality of being done on purpose or with intent.
The author’s choice here may not have been intentionally racially charged, but discrimination and prejudice are often not rooted in intentionality.
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an attitude of purposefulness, with a commitment to deliberate action.
“Active hope” is a practice that does not require optimism; instead, it requires intentionality.
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Metaphysics.
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the capacity of the mind to refer to an existent or nonexistent object.
The mind has intentionality as it is directed toward something it affirms, desires, loves, or hates; but the something is not necessarily real.
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(said of consciousness or a sign) the fact or property of pointing beyond itself.
We relate to the world through intentionality—the capacity of consciousness to be about states of affairs outside itself.
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Etymology
Origin of intentionality
First recorded in 1610–20; from Medieval Latin intentiōnālitās, equivalent to intentional ( def. ) + -ity ( def. )
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.
Elaborating further, emphasizing his disregard for intentionality, he wrote: “It chooses you. . . . Taste is the enemy of art.”
From The Wall Street Journal • May 30, 2026
He added that there is "a new intentionality in Venezuelan politics in line with the alliance schemes that exist on the geopolitical level between Venezuela and the United States."
From Barron's • May 16, 2026
There is a lack of intentionality around how you both manage your money.
From MarketWatch • Nov. 11, 2025
“What Rainmaker is trying to do is bring some intentionality to that, so that we can modify the weather for our benefit and deliberately.”
From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 21, 2025
Pointers to objects-broken branches along a path, obsidian flakes where stones had been processed, ashes where a fire had burned-and, even more so, symptoms-strength or weakness-are less immediate, but still free of intentionality.
From The Civilization of Illiteracy by Nadin, Mihai
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.
