notional

[ noh-shuh-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. Compare relational ( def 3 ), symbolic ( def 4 ).

notional

/ 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

Derived Forms

• ˈnotionally, adverb

Other Words From

• notion·ali·ty noun
• notion·al·ly adverb
• non·notion·al adjective
• un·notion·al adjective
• un·notion·al·ly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of notional¹

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

Example Sentences

But Streeting’s view became public after he told a large, notionally private, meeting of Labour MPs what he thought.

From BBC

The Democratic Party did indeed defenestrate its notional leader, at nearly the last possible instant and in dramatically successful fashion.

From Salon

Scotland is not alone in running a notional deficit.

From BBC

So the baseline for this contest in terms of gains and losses is not the 2019 result, but the "notional" result using the new boundaries.

From BBC

The counterweight to the arguments against FIT21 is cash — the green variety, not the notional type marketed by cryptocurrency firms.

From Los Angeles Times