nominal

[ nom-uh-nl ]
See synonyms for nominal on Thesaurus.com
adjective
  1. being such in name only; so-called; putative: a nominal treaty;the nominal head of the country.

  2. (of a price, consideration, etc.) named as a mere matter of form, being trifling in comparison with the actual or expected amount or value; minimal or insignificant: a nominal fee;a nominal improvement.

  1. of, relating to, or constituting a name or names.

  2. Grammar.

    • of, relating to, or producing a noun or nouns: a nominal suffix.

    • functioning as or like a noun.

  3. assigned to a person by name: nominal shares of stock.

  4. containing, bearing, or giving a name or names.

  5. (of money, income, or the like) measured in an amount rather than in real value: Nominal wages have risen 50 percent, but real wages are down because of inflation.

  6. Chiefly Aerospace. performing or achieved within expected, acceptable limits; normal and satisfactory: The mission was nominal throughout.

noun
  1. Grammar. a word or group of words functioning as a noun.

Origin of nominal

1
First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English nominalle “of a noun,” from Latin nōminālis “of, belonging to a name or names, nominal,” equivalent to nōmin- (stem of nōmen ) + -ālis adjective suffix; see nomen,-al1

Other words for nominal

Other words from nominal

  • pre·nom·i·nal, adjective
  • un·nom·i·nal, adjective
  • un·nom·i·nal·ly, adverb

Words Nearby nominal

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use nominal in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for nominal

nominal

/ (ˈnɒmɪnəl) /


adjective
  1. in name only; theoretical: the nominal leader

  2. minimal in comparison with real worth or what is expected; token: a nominal fee

  1. of, relating to, constituting, bearing, or giving a name

  2. grammar of or relating to a noun or noun phrase

noun
  1. grammar a nominal element; a noun, noun phrase, or syntactically similar structure

  2. bell-ringing the harmonic an octave above the strike tone of a bell

Origin of nominal

1
C15: from Latin nōminālis of a name, from nōmen name

Derived forms of nominal

  • nominally, adverb

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012