COUNTERFACTUAL Synonyms: 58 Similar and Opposite Words

counterfactual

adjective

Definition of counterfactual

as in erroneous

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of counterfactual Havana Docks did not have to prove that the cruise lines interfered with a property interest that would have existed in the counterfactual scenario in which the Cuban Government did not confiscate it. — Nora Gámez Torres, Miami Herald, 21 May 2026 Mandatory frontier-model approval simultaneously fails the targeting, counterfactual durability, and enforceability tests. — Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Fortune, 15 May 2026 In our counterfactual future, Argentina, Chile, and Uruguay in South America’s southern cone, so close to Antarctica, have to adapt to some of the harshest effects of the widening hole in the ozone. — Big Think, 31 Mar. 2026 In Dark Matter, a parallel-universe version of Chicago as a desolate wasteland is more obviously counterfactual—and thus less uncanny—than a parallel universe in which the main character’s wife had not given up her career as an artist to have children. — Ian Bogost, The Atlantic, 26 Nov. 2025 See All Example Sentences for counterfactual

Recent Examples of Synonyms for counterfactual

Adjective

Instead, Denver retained possession and capitalized on the erroneous call to win.

— Bobby Burack OutKick, FOXNews.com, 6 Oct. 2026
That a reporter or two heard of this normal process led to the erroneous inference that a change of leadership is imminent.

— Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Fortune, 1 Oct. 2026

Definition of erroneous

Adjective

When isolated issues in other states occur, even if proved untrue, the intense and repeated national media attention on them shakes voter confidence here at home.

— Heather LaMarre, The Conversation, 14 Oct. 2026
The first complainant, whose claims Brand says are untrue, was said by the prosecution to have been raped by Brand.

— Lily Ford, HollywoodReporter, 14 Oct. 2026

Definition of untrue

Adjective

Those commitments can be withdrawn if Saab is untruthful with investigators or probation officials, commits another crime or otherwise violates the agreement.

— Antonio Maria Delgado, Miami Herald, 15 Sep. 2026
However, subsequent video evidence led officials to claim that the officers involved had likely made untruthful statements about what happened.

— Paloma Chavez, PEOPLE, 27 Aug. 2026

Definition of untruthful

Adjective

Thomas drives away with a limp, malfunctioning Vision next to him, and an illusory, wisecracking Ultron in the back seat.

— Tasha Robinson, Vulture, 14 Oct. 2026
Yet these promises of a self-running state are illusory, because AI is never truly autonomous.

— Seva Gunitsky, Foreign Affairs, 1 Oct. 2026

Definition of illusory

Adjective

The series will be set in a fictitious Barneys in Beverly Hills, not New York, and the real founding family of the retailer, the Pressman family, has no involvement, the spokesperson said.

— Jean E. Palmieri, Footwear News, 14 Oct. 2026
Dempsey appeared in Disney’s fantasy romance Enchanted (2007) as Robert Philip, a New York divorce lawyer whose orderly life is disrupted by the arrival of a fairy-tale princess (played by Amy Adams) from the fictitious land of Andalasia.

— Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 9 Oct. 2026

Definition of fictitious

Adjective

Medical identity theft can lead to fraudulent bills and inaccurate patient records, so catching problems early is important.

— Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 18 Oct. 2026
Working with fellow researchers, Cade now has a good reason to believe the Nature report is more than likely inaccurate – the train’s rail route didn’t exist until 1846.

— Mike McRae October 15, New Atlas, 16 Oct. 2026

Definition of inaccurate

Adjective

As a result, choosing a plan based solely on monthly premiums can be misleading.

— Cindy Krischer Goodman, Sun Sentinel, 14 Oct. 2026
The Idaho Consumer Protection Act, enacted in 1971, protects consumers from false, deceptive or misleading representations, advertising, pricing and contracts.

— Harllie Stevenson, Idaho Statesman, 14 Oct. 2026

Definition of misleading

Browse Nearby Words

counterevidence

counterfactual

counterfeit

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Style

“Counterfactual.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/counterfactual. Accessed 21 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of counterfactual

adjective

Example Sentences

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