meaningful

[ mee-ning-fuhl ]

adjective

1. full of meaning, significance, purpose, or value; purposeful; significant:

   a meaningful wink;

   a meaningful choice.

meaningful

/ ˈmiːnɪŋfʊl /

adjective

1. having great meaning or validity
2. eloquent, expressive

   a meaningful silence

Derived Forms

• ˈmeaningfulness, noun
• ˈmeaningfully, adverb

Other Words From

• meaning·ful·ly adverb
• meaning·ful·ness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of meaningful¹

First recorded in 1850–55; meaning + -ful

Example Sentences

Murray said the number of digital subscribers is in the tens of thousands range while the revenue earned from that business was not yet a meaningful portion of the publication’s overall revenue.

From Digiday

She leads all rookies1 in block percentage, she’s third in effective field-goal percentage, and she’s playing meaningful minutes for a Seattle team that leads the WNBA.

From FiveThirtyEight

That’s why it would be important for the new agency to have a technically sophisticated staff and meaningful access to company data.

From MIT Technology Review

Today’s riots, still relatively rare, roil after years of legal logjams and gridlock on meaningful policing reform.

From Vox

During the pandemic, with hooking up really off the table, we’ve really seen that accelerate a strong demand for services and apps that provide more meaningful connections.

From Fortune

We have richer, healthier lives and more meaningful relationships of all kinds.

From The Daily Beast

Carla points out how meaningful it can be to have people in your life who simply understand what you're going through.

From The Daily Beast

If they were meaningful, we might have realized it before—surely one of these kids wore a cross, or a yarmulke, or a hijab?

From The Daily Beast

He posted on Facebook about wanting to do something “right” and meaningful.

From The Daily Beast

Yet meaningful negotiations to free the hostages have failed to get off the ground.

From The Daily Beast

One may be good at organizing meaningful material but poor at remembering mere words.

From Project Gutenberg

Only when bedtime came did the continued silence of his mother become meaningful.

From Project Gutenberg

Then the teacher has the wonderful experience of mutual attention in which meaningful communication has taken place.

From Project Gutenberg

Machismo was more meaningful to the average estate than education.

From Project Gutenberg

Familiarity with the biological components of an ecosystem is essential to meaningful radiobiological assessment.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• consequential
• essential
• important
• purposeful
• relevant
• serious
• substantial
• useful
• valid
• worthwhile

When To Use

What are other ways to say meaningful?

Something that is meaningful, such as a meaningful wink or meaningful choice, is full of meaning, purpose, or value. Do you know how meaningful differs from the synonyms expressive, significant, and suggestive? Find out on Thesaurus.com.