phantasmic

adjective

Definition of phantasmicnext
as in imaginary
not real and existing only in the imagination had spent a restless night during which he was visited by a series of phantasmic figures

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 phantasmic Standing to the right, the viewer perceives this phantasmic figure underneath their reflection, a disturbing Other, a double. — James Meyer, Artforum, 1 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for phantasmic
  1. imaginary
  2. mythical
  3. fictional
  4. fictitious
  5. imaginal
  6. imagined
Adjective
  • Where travel still leaves room for people The goal isn't to return to some imaginary golden age of travel.
    — Christopher Elliott, USA Today, 28 Aug. 2026
  • There isn’t even a drastic generational shift between that imaginary cast and this film’s actual one.
    — Guy Lodge, Variety, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of imaginary
Adjective
  • Morris’s book focuses only on the representation of real animals; cataloguing mythic and hybrid creatures would take another volume entirely.
    — Kelly Presutti, ARTnews.com, 28 Aug. 2026
  • Equally jubilant and terrifying, his size brings both John and Jim Ross to this mythic quality.
    — Charlotte Observer, Charlotte Observer, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of mythical
Adjective
  • In the footage, players follow the story of Jason and Lucia, a couple living in the fictional Vice City, who are picking up drugs, and their mission is thwarted by the police, who begin to raid the place.
    — Moises Mendez II, USA Today, 2 Sep. 2026
  • Claire Foy will also star in the film, playing a fictional reporter of The Sun that acts as a composite of various female reporters of the time period.
    — Wilson Chapman, IndieWire, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of fictional
Adjective
  • The April indictment accused the organization of secretly funneling millions of dollars in donor funds to informants embedded in violent extremist movements, using bank accounts opened for fictitious companies.
    — Arie Perliger, The Conversation, 31 Aug. 2026
  • The inaugural Ig Nobel Prize ceremony honored three fictitious achievers; all recipients in subsequent years (barring a 1994 award based on inaccurate reporting) have been real people.
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 31 Aug. 2026
Definition of fictitious
Adjective
  • Peter [Merry] likes to use is that, when a caterpillar is becoming a butterfly, new ‘imaginal cells’ emerge.
    — Big Think, Big Think, 7 Aug. 2025
  • With one technique, for example—called imaginal exposure—you might be asked to visualize the process of going to the airport, boarding the plane, and experiencing a bad bout of turbulence.
    — Angela Haupt, TIME, 10 May 2024
Definition of imaginal
Adjective
  • And this year’s menu reflects some through-the-years favorites, including some that have been re-imagined.
    — Dewayne Bevil, The Orlando Sentinel, 28 Aug. 2026
  • Excess doorways were removed and replaced with new casework—the removal of some doorways allowed some spaces to be re-imagined, creating reading nooks or quiet collaboration spaces.
    — Karen Billing, San Diego Union-Tribune, 25 Aug. 2026
Definition of imagined

Browse Nearby Words

phantasmal
phantasmic
phantasms
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Phantasmic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/phantasmic. Accessed 5 Sep. 2026.

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