ideality

noun

ide·​al·​i·​ty ˌī-dē-ˈa-lə-tē How to pronounce ideality (audio)
plural idealities
1
a
: the quality or state of being ideal
b
: existence only in idea
2
: something imaginary or idealized

Examples of ideality in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Queerness is an ideality. Madison Moore, The Atlantic, 26 July 2021 Others upped the ideality quotient by trekking into the countryside, through farmlands and forests, down to the sea. Holland Cotter, New York Times, 23 Mar. 2023 History is the concrete body of a development, with its moments of intensity, its lapses, its extended periods of feverish agitation, its fainting spells; and only a metaphysician would seek its soul in the distant ideality of the origin. Matthew Karp, Harper's Magazine, 22 June 2021

Word History

First Known Use

1701, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of ideality was in 1701

Dictionary Entries Near ideality

Cite this Entry

“Ideality.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ideality. Accessed 22 Dec. 2024.

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!