incorporeal
Americanadjective
-
not corporeal or material; insubstantial.
- Synonyms:
- immaterial, spiritual, bodiless
-
of, relating to, or characteristic of nonmaterial beings.
-
Law. without material existence but existing in contemplation of law, as a franchise.
adjective
-
without material form, body, or substance
-
spiritual or metaphysical
-
law having no material existence but existing by reason of its annexation of something material, such as an easement, touchline, copyright, etc
an incorporeal hereditament
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of incorporeal
1525–35; < Latin incorpore ( us ) + -al 1. See in- 3, corporeal
Explanation
Something that has no material form or physical substance can be described as incorporeal. If you believe in spirits or ghosts that can't be touched or seen but only felt, then you believe in the incorporeal. Incorporeal comes from a combination of the Latin root words in- meaning "not" and corpus meaning "body." Combined they form incorporeus, meaning "without body," which is precisely what something incorporeal is. A haunted house is plagued by incorporeal, or immaterial spirits. You don't see them, but they are there, rattling windows, slamming doors, scaring the living daylights out of you.
Vocabulary lists containing incorporeal
Paradise Lost
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
"Wuthering Heights" by Emily Bronte, Chapters 21–26
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Legendborn
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
Those $200 in chips made the questions of financial responsibility that loomed over me in every other avenue of my life gloriously incorporeal.
From Slate ● Nov. 18, 2025
He investigates a service that promises to make him incorporeal, to “get rid of the burden of having a body” — because of that “mole,” I guess.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 7, 2024
“It would mean that any criticism of the central government can be described as a terrorist act because the honor of India is its incorporeal property,” the court said in its bail order.
From Seattle Times ● Nov. 24, 2023
They write: “A deity that rules communication is an incorporeal linguistic power. A modern conception of such might read: a force of language from outside of materiality.”
From The Verge ● Nov. 1, 2021
In Weep it was she who was the ghost, and an unbound one, invisible, incorporeal, insubstantial as a murmur.
From "Strange the Dreamer" by Laini Taylor
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.
