QUIXOTIC Synonyms: 37 Similar and Opposite Words

Q: How does the adjective 'quixotic' contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of quixotic are chimerical , fanciful , fantastic , imaginary , and visionary . While all these words mean "unreal or unbelievable," quixotic implies a devotion to romantic or chivalrous ideals unrestrained by ordinary prudence and common sense. // a quixotic crusade

Q: How does the word 'chimerical' relate to other synonyms for 'quixotic'?

Chimerical combines the implication of visionary and fantastic . // chimerical dreams of future progress

Q: When can 'fanciful' be used instead of 'quixotic'?

The words fanciful and quixotic can be used in similar contexts, but fanciful suggests the free play of the imagination. // a teller of fanciful stories

Q: When would 'fantastic' be a good substitute for 'quixotic'?

While the synonyms fantastic and quixotic are close in meaning, fantastic implies incredibility or strangeness beyond belief. // a fantastic world inhabited by monsters

Q: When is 'imaginary' a more appropriate choice than 'quixotic'?

The meanings of imaginary and quixotic largely overlap; however, imaginary applies to something which is fictitious and purely the product of one's imagination. // an imaginary desert isle

Q: When is it sensible to use 'visionary' instead of 'quixotic'?

While in some cases nearly identical to quixotic , visionary stresses impracticality or incapability of realization. // visionary schemes

quixotic

adjective

kwik-ˈsä-tik

Definition of quixotic

as in romantic

having or marked by a tendency to be guided more by ideals than by reality in this age of giant chain stores, any attempt at operating an independent bookstore must be regarded as quixotic

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How does the adjective quixotic contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of quixotic are chimerical, fanciful, fantastic, imaginary, and visionary. While all these words mean "unreal or unbelievable," quixotic implies a devotion to romantic or chivalrous ideals unrestrained by ordinary prudence and common sense.

a quixotic crusade

How does the word chimerical relate to other synonyms for quixotic?

Chimerical combines the implication of visionary and fantastic.

chimerical dreams of future progress

When can fanciful be used instead of quixotic?

The words fanciful and quixotic can be used in similar contexts, but fanciful suggests the free play of the imagination.

a teller of fanciful stories

When would fantastic be a good substitute for quixotic?

While the synonyms fantastic and quixotic are close in meaning, fantastic implies incredibility or strangeness beyond belief.

a fantastic world inhabited by monsters

When is imaginary a more appropriate choice than quixotic?

The meanings of imaginary and quixotic largely overlap; however, imaginary applies to something which is fictitious and purely the product of one's imagination.

an imaginary desert isle

When is it sensible to use visionary instead of quixotic?

While in some cases nearly identical to quixotic, visionary stresses impracticality or incapability of realization.

visionary schemes

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 quixotic Its protagonist is a quixotic teenage girl named Elsie, who weaves dreamily through a party at her parents’ country home. — Literary Hub, 14 July 2026 Graham Platner, the Marine Corps veteran and oysterman who mounted a quixotic bid for the US Senate in Maine, was used to controversy—headlines had been bad enough already, and his campaign aides spent much of their time dealing with lurid rumors. — Aidan McLaughlin, Vanity Fair, 9 July 2026 During the Cold War, quixotic Albanian dictator Enver Hoxha built some 750,000 concrete pillboxes to fend off a phantom invasion that never came. — Max Grinstein, The Washington Examiner, 3 July 2026 Arguing now for a return to a more bureaucratic, less competitive system seems a quixotic pursuit. — David Blackmon, Forbes.com, 23 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for quixotic

Recent Examples of Synonyms for quixotic

Adjective

The Saturday Night Live alum worked with Fey on that show and on his current romantic dramedy, Netflix’s The Four Seasons.

— Raechal Shewfelt, Entertainment Weekly, 1 Sep. 2026
But though these chemicals are linked to mating in animal species, a link between pheromones and romantic attraction hasn’t been established in humans.

— Rachel Hale, USA Today, 31 Aug. 2026

Definition of romantic

Adjective

First glimpsed in The Empire Strikes Back and heavily featured in Return of the Jedi are typical of the Empire; designed to instil fear, but laughably impractical.

— Chris McMullen, Space.com, 5 Sep. 2026
Without the proper port facilities, regulations, safety protocols, and other essentials, nuclear cargo ships are as impractical as steamships without coal or oil refueling stations.

— New Atlas, New Atlas, 4 Sep. 2026

Definition of impractical

Adjective

After an idealistic youth and a subsequent nervous breakdown, our eldest Ramona, Ramona Jover, eventually finds strength in resignation to what a woman born in the 1800s can ever do or be.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 26 Aug. 2026
Harper arrived at Bates College in Maine in 2020 as an idealistic new PhD in comparative literature, grateful for the tenure-track job that promised him that rarest of prizes these days — a career in the humanities.

— Gary Rosen, Washington Post, 19 Aug. 2026

Definition of idealistic

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“Quixotic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/quixotic. Accessed 6 Sep. 2026.

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