notional

American  

[noh-shuh-nl] / ˈnoʊ ʃə nl /

adjective

1. pertaining to or expressing a notion or idea.

2. of the nature of a notion or idea.

   a notional response to the question.

3. abstract, theoretical, or speculative, as reflective thought.

4. not real or actual; ideal or imaginary.

   to create a notional world for oneself.

5. given to or full of foolish or fanciful ideas or moods.

6. Grammar.

   1. relating to the meaning expressed by a linguistic form.

   2. having full lexical meaning, in contrast to relational.

7. Semantics. belonging to a class of words that express clear concepts rather than relations between concepts; presentive.

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notional British  

/ ˈnəʊʃənəl /

adjective

1. relating to, expressing, or consisting of notions or ideas

2. not evident in reality; hypothetical or imaginary

   a notional tax credit

3. characteristic of a notion or concept, esp in being speculative or imaginary; abstract

4. grammar

   1. (of a word) having lexical meaning

   2. another word for semantic

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Other Word Forms

• notionality
  noun
• nonnotional
  adjective
• unnotional
  adjective
• notionally
  adverb
• unnotionally
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of notional

First recorded in 1590–1600; notion + -al ¹

Example Sentences

England began a baking final day with scant hope of an escape, resuming on 182-5, chasing a notional 463.

From BBC • Jun. 21, 2026

U.S. notional volume of levered ETFs is about $90 billion, up from almost nothing a decade ago, per Goldman Sachs data.

From Barron's • Jun. 17, 2026

JPMorgan’s markets unit, one of the biggest providers of QIS programs, manages over $100 billion in notional exposure to the trades—the face value of those positions.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 21, 2026

Anthropic’s dispute with the government is more than “just notional or just symbolic,” he said, and carries real risk for the company.

From Salon • Mar. 23, 2026

Just outside the park there is a board marking the traditional, but entirely notional, midpoint of the Appalachian Trail, with 1,080.2 indicated miles of hiking in either direction.

From "A Walk in the Woods" by Bill Bryson