adj
Meaning 1
Having a lively or creative imagination.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Examples
- an imaginative boy
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Standard Lemma guide
imaginative
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.
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/ɪˈmæd͡ʒɪnətɪv/
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/-ənətɪv/
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/ɪˈmæd͡ʒnətɪv/
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US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
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CMU ARPABET: IH2 M AE1 JH AH0 N AH0 T IH0 V Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
adj
Meaning 2
Tending to be fanciful or inventive.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Examples
- an imaginative story
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
adj
Meaning 3
False or imagined.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
adjective satellite
Meaning 4
(used of persons or artifacts) marked by independence and creativity in thought or action- Lewis Mumford
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
- an imaginative use of material
- the invention of the knitting frame by another ingenious English clergyman
- an ingenious device
- had an inventive turn of mind
- inventive ceramics
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: inventive
Antonyms: none provided
History
Etymology
From Middle English ymagynatif, from Middle French imaginatif, from Medieval Latin imāginātīvus. By surface analysis, imagine + -ative.
Across languages
Translations
41 source translations are retained for this English entry.
- Catalan: imaginatiu — having a lively imagination
- Chinese Mandarin: 富有想像力的 (fùyǒu xiǎngxiànglì de) — having a lively imagination
- Chinese Mandarin: 充滿創意的 /充满创意的 (chōngmǎn chuàngyì de) — having a lively imagination
- Chinese Mandarin: 想像力豐富的 /想像力丰富的 (xiǎngxiànglì fēngfù de) — having a lively imagination
- Finnish: kekseliäs — having a lively imagination
- Finnish: mielikuvituksellinen — having a lively imagination
- Finnish: mielikuvituksekas — having a lively imagination
- Finnish: mielikuvitusrikas — having a lively imagination
- French: imaginatif — having a lively imagination
- Galician: imaxinativo — having a lively imagination
- German: einfallsreich — having a lively imagination
- Greek: ευφάνταστος (effántastos) — having a lively imagination
- Ancient Greek: εὐφάνταστος (euphántastos) — having a lively imagination
- Interlingua: imaginative — having a lively imagination
- Italian: immaginoso — having a lively imagination
- Polish: pomysłowy — having a lively imagination
- Portuguese: imaginativo — having a lively imagination
- Scottish Gaelic: mac-meanmnach — having a lively imagination
- Spanish: imaginativo — having a lively imagination
- Arabic: خيالي — tending to be fanciful
- Catalan: imaginatiu — tending to be fanciful
- Chinese Mandarin: 充滿想像力的 /充满想像力的 (chōngmǎn xiǎngxiànglì de) — tending to be fanciful
- Chinese Mandarin: 傾向幻想的 /倾向幻想的 (qīngxiàng huànxiǎng de) — tending to be fanciful
- Chinese Mandarin: 富創意的 /富创意的 (fù chuàngyì de) — tending to be fanciful
- Finnish: luova — tending to be fanciful
- Finnish: mielikuvitusrikas — tending to be fanciful
- French: imaginatif — tending to be fanciful
- Interlingua: imaginative — tending to be fanciful
- Scottish Gaelic: mac-meanmnach — tending to be fanciful
- Chinese Mandarin: 虛假的 /虚假的 (xūjiǎ de) — false or imagined
- Chinese Mandarin: 虛構的 /虚构的 (xūgòu de) — false or imagined
- Chinese Mandarin: 想像的 (xiǎngxiàng de) — false or imagined
- Finnish: keksitty — false or imagined
- Finnish: kuvitteellinen — false or imagined
- Finnish: mielikuvituksekas — false or imagined
- Finnish: kuviteltu — false or imagined
- French: imaginaire — false or imagined
- Russian: вообража́емый (voobražájemyj) — false or imagined
- Russian: мни́мый (mnímyj) — false or imagined
- Russian: нереа́льный (nereálʹnyj) — false or imagined
- Scottish Gaelic: mac-meanmnach — false or imagined
Real reading context