Ideal Meaning
/aɪˈdɪəl/Definition, CEFR level A2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
adjPertaining to ideas, or to a given idea.
adjExisting only in the mind; conceptual, imaginary.
Sentence Examples
The seaside is an ideal spot for the children to play.
It's ideal weather for a picnic.
A quiet beach is the ideal place for a vacation.
CEFR Practice Quiz
This small apartment is an ____ place for a single person to live comfortably.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The mild spring weather today is ____ for having a relaxing family picnic in the local park.
Word Origin & History
From French idéal, from Late Latin ideālis (“existing in idea”), by surface analysis, idea + -al, from Latin idea (“idea”); see idea. In mathematics, the noun ring theory sense was first introduced by German mathematician Richard Dedekind in his 1871 edition of a text on number theory. The concept was quickly expanded to ring theory and later generalised to order theory. The set theory and Lie theory senses can be regarded as applications of the order theory sense.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"The idea of ghosts is ridiculous in the extreme; and if you continue to be swayed by ideal terrors —"
— 1796, Matthew Lewis, The Monk, Folio Society, published 1985, page 256:
"Life and death appeared to me ideal bounds, which I should first break through, and pour a torrent of light into our dark world."
— 1816 June – 1817 April/May (date written), [Mary Shelley], “Chapter 4”, in Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus. […], volume (please specify |volume=I to III), London: […] [Macdonald and Son] for Lackington, Hughes, Harding, Mavor, & Jones, published 1 January 1818, →OCLC:
"At first, he began to doubt the reality of his adventures, but the acute pain in his shoulders when he attempted to rise, assured him that the kicking of the goblins was certainly not ideal."
— 1836 March – 1837 October, Charles Dickens, “(please specify the chapter name)”, in The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club, London: Chapman and Hall, […], published 1837, →OCLC:
"Varvara Andreevna, when I was very young, I set before myself the ideal of the woman I loved and should be happy to call my wife."
— 1901 [1878], chapter 5, in Constance Garnett, transl., Anna Karenina, translation of Анна Каренина (Anna Karenina) by Leo Tolstoy, part 6:
"With great humility, I call upon all Americans to help me keep our nation united in defense of those ideals which have been so eloquently proclaimed by Franklin Roosevelt. I want in turn to assure my fellow Americans and all of those who love peace and liberty throughout the world that I will support and defend those ideals with all my strength and all my heart."
— 1945 April 16, Harry S. Truman, 9:21 from the start, in MP72-20 President Roosevelt’s Funeral and Procession; Truman – New President of U.S., Harry S. Truman Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives Identifier: 595162:
Explore More A2 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
This small apartment is an ____ place for a single person to live comfortably.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The mild spring weather today is ____ for having a relaxing family picnic in the local park.