fanciful

[ fan-si-fuhl ]
See synonyms for: fancifulfancifulness on Thesaurus.com

adjective
  1. characterized by or showing fancy; capricious or whimsical in appearance: a fanciful design of butterflies and flowers.

  2. suggested by fancy; imaginary; unreal: fanciful lands of romance.

  1. led by fancy rather than by reason and experience; whimsical: a fanciful mind.

Origin of fanciful

1
First recorded in 1620–30; fancy + -ful

Other words for fanciful

Other words from fanciful

  • fan·ci·ful·ly, adverb
  • fan·ci·ful·ness, noun
  • o·ver·fan·ci·ful, adjective
  • o·ver·fan·ci·ful·ly, adverb
  • o·ver·fan·ci·ful·ness, noun
  • un·fan·ci·ful, adjective

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

How to use fanciful in a sentence

  • In front of the duke's pavilion was hung his shield, and by its side stood his squire, fancifully dressed in rich colors.

    Under the Rose | Frederic Stewart Isham

British Dictionary definitions for fanciful

fanciful

/ (ˈfænsɪfʊl) /


adjective
  1. not based on fact; dubious or imaginary: fanciful notions

  2. made or designed in a curious, intricate, or imaginative way

  1. indulging in or influenced by fancy; whimsical

Derived forms of fanciful

  • fancifully, adverb
  • fancifulness, noun

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