SYNONYMS AND RELATED EXPRESSIONS
whimsical
adjective
Playfully fanciful or guided by an unusual fancy.
Local English device voice, when available. This is not a recorded dictionary pronunciation.
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A useful distinction
Alternatives apply to the displayed meaning. Related wording may differ in tone or grammar and is not always interchangeable.
Playfully fanciful or guided by an unusual fancy
Closest synonyms
Related words and expressions
These extend or explain the idea and may require a different sentence structure.
Usage distinction
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RELATED FORMS, ONE FEATURED ENTRY
The whimsical family
These forms are closely related, but their grammar and use are not identical. Expand a form to compare its meaning and examples.
whimsynoun
Playful fancy or an unusual imaginative notion.
Playful fancy or an unusual imaginative notion
Closest synonyms
Related expressions
A touch of whimsy kept the serious exhibition from feeling austere.
The story balances precise observation with gentle whimsy.
CHECK THE MEANING IN CONTEXT
See whimsical in use
The illustrator added a whimsical procession of teapots.
Her whimsical solution delighted the children.
Compare an alternative with the original word in each passage. Shared meanings do not make every pair interchangeable.
Synonym reference scope and sources
The groups distinguish the senses selected for this study entry. Closest synonyms and broader related expressions have separate labels. The listed sources support lexical selection; not every phrase is a direct quotation from a source.
How the synonym reference was prepared / WordNet 3.0 license