Standard Lemma guide

cerebral

adj · 5 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Received-Pronunciation: /ˈsɛ.ɹɪb.ɹəl/
  • Received-Pronunciation: /ˈsɛ.ɹɪb.ɹl̩/
  • Received-Pronunciation: /səˈɹiː.bɹəl/
  • Received-Pronunciation: /səˈɹiː.bɹl̩/
  • General-American: /səˈɹi.bɹəl/
  • General-American: /ˈsɛɹ.əb.ɹəl/
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • Australia: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • rhymes with -ɛɹɪbɹəl
  • rhymes with -iːbɹəl
  • CMU ARPABET: S EH1 R AH0 B R AH0 L Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
  • CMU ARPABET 2: S ER0 IY1 B R AH0 L Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

adj

Meaning 1

Of or relating to the brain, cerebrum, or cerebral cortex.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: relational

Topics: anatomy, medicine, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: brainial, brainy

Antonyms: none provided

2

adj

Meaning 2

Intellectual rather than emotional or physical.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

adj

Meaning 3

Retroflex.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: obsolete

Topics: human-sciences, linguistics, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

adjective

Meaning 4

involving intelligence rather than emotions or instinct

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • a cerebral approach to the problem
  • cerebral drama

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: intellectual

Antonyms: emotional

5

adjective

Meaning 5

of or relating to the cerebrum or brain

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • cerebral hemisphere
  • cerebral activity

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

Borrowing from French cérébral, from Latin cerebrum (“a brain”); equivalent to cerebrum + -al.

Semantic loan from Sanskrit मूर्धन्य (mūrdhanya, “pertaining to the head”).

Across languages

Translations

62 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Arabic: مُخِّيّ (muḵḵiyy) — of or relating to the brain
  • Armenian: ուղեղային (uġeġayin) — of or relating to the brain
  • Asturian: cerebral — of or relating to the brain
  • Belarusian: мазгавы́ (mazhavý) — of or relating to the brain
  • Belarusian: цэрэбра́льны (cerebrálʹny) — of or relating to the brain
  • Bulgarian: церебра́лен (cerebrálen) — of or relating to the brain
  • Catalan: cerebral — of or relating to the brain
  • Chinese Mandarin: 大腦的 /大脑的 (dànǎo de) — of or relating to the brain
  • Czech: cerebrální — of or relating to the brain
  • Czech: mozkový — of or relating to the brain
  • Danish: cerebral — of or relating to the brain
  • Dutch: cerebraal — of or relating to the brain
  • Esperanto: cerba — of or relating to the brain
  • Finnish: aivoperäinen — of or relating to the brain
  • Finnish: serebraalinen — of or relating to the brain
  • Finnish: aivo- — of or relating to the brain
  • French: cérébral — of or relating to the brain
  • Galician: cerebral — of or relating to the brain
  • Georgian: ცერებრალური (cerebraluri) — of or relating to the brain
  • German: zerebral — of or relating to the brain
  • German: cerebral — of or relating to the brain
  • German: zerebral- — of or relating to the brain
  • German: Gehirn- — of or relating to the brain
  • German: Hirn- — of or relating to the brain
  • German: Cerebro- — of or relating to the brain
  • Greek: εγκεφαλικός (egkefalikós) — of or relating to the brain
  • Ido: cerebrala — of or relating to the brain
  • Irish: ceirbreach — of or relating to the brain
  • Italian: cerebrale — of or relating to the brain
  • Latin: cerebrālis — of or relating to the brain
  • Norwegian: cerebral — of or relating to the brain
  • Polish: mózgowy — of or relating to the brain
  • Portuguese: cerebral — of or relating to the brain
  • Romanian: cerebral — of or relating to the brain
  • Russian: мозгово́й (mozgovój) — of or relating to the brain
  • Russian: церебра́льный (cerebrálʹnyj) — of or relating to the brain
  • Slovak: cerebrálny — of or relating to the brain
  • Slovak: mozgový — of or relating to the brain
  • Slovene: možganski — of or relating to the brain
  • Spanish: cerebral — of or relating to the brain
  • Swedish: cerebral — of or relating to the brain
  • Turkish: beyinsel — of or relating to the brain
  • Ukrainian: мозкови́й (mozkovýj) — of or relating to the brain
  • Ukrainian: церебра́льний (cerebrálʹnyj) — of or relating to the brain
  • Volapük: breinik — of or relating to the brain
  • Armenian: մտավոր (mtavor) — intellectual
  • Catalan: cerebral — intellectual
  • Czech: intelektuální — intellectual
  • Finnish: älyllinen — intellectual
  • French: cérébral — intellectual
  • German: intellektuell — intellectual
  • German: geistig — intellectual
  • German: kopfig — intellectual
  • German: verkopft — intellectual
  • Greek: πνευματικός (pnevmatikós) — intellectual
  • Greek: νοητικός (noïtikós) — intellectual
  • Indonesian: berotak — intellectual
  • Irish: intleachtúil — intellectual
  • Irish: meabhrach — intellectual
  • Polish: intelektualny — intellectual
  • Russian: интеллектуа́льный (intellektuálʹnyj) — intellectual
  • Turkish: entelektüel — intellectual
Real reading context

cerebral in complete knowledge articles