chimerical

English

Etymology

From chimera, from Latin chimaera, from Ancient Greek χίμαιρα (khímaira, “she-goat”). This term entered English around 1638.

Pronunciation

• IPA: /kɪˈmɛɹɪkəl/

Adjective

chimerical (comparative more chimerical, superlative most chimerical)

1. Of or pertaining to a chimera.
2. Being a figment of the imagination; fantastic (in the archaic sense).
   • 1877, Arthur Conan Doyle, A Study in Scarlet

     "Yes; I have a turn both for observation and for deduction. The theories which I have expressed there, and which appear to you to be so chimerical, are really extremely practical—so practical that I depend upon them for my bread and cheese."

   a chimerical goal

3. Inherently fantastic; wildly fanciful.

Translations

of or pertaining to a chimera

• Esperanto: ĥimera (eo)

being a figment of the imagination

• Esperanto: ĥimera (eo)

inherently fantastic

• Esperanto: ĥimera (eo)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Help:How to check translations.

Translations to be checked

• Italian: chimerico

Derived terms

• chimerically