notional
/ˈnoʊʃənəl/adjective, noun
notional is spelled N-O-T-I-O-N-A-L: 8 letters and 3 syllables. It appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 46,473rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, notional means “Of, containing, or being a notion; mental or imaginary” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in notional?
| Letters | 8: N-O-T-I-O-N-A-L |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 2 million words; the 46,473rd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is notional?
Notional appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 46,473rd most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce notional?
- UK /ˈnəʊʃənəl/
- US /ˈnoʊʃənəl/
Notional has 3 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-notional.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with notional?
5 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as notional from its last stressed vowel (/oʊʃənəl/):
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of notional
- more notional comparative
- most notional superlative
- notionals plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does notional mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Of, containing, or being a notion; mental or imaginary.
Near-synonyms: conceptual, fancied, fanciful, ideal
- 2
Speculative, theoretical, not the result of research.
This paper proposes a notional Federated Identity Management (FIM) architecture.
- 3
Stubborn.
- 4
Having descriptive value as opposed to a syntactic category.
- 5
Used to indicate an estimate or a reference amount
- 6
informalFull of ideas or imaginings.
noun
- 1
A fake company used as a front in espionage.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Notional in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | notionnel |
| Spanish | nocional |
| German | rein gedanklich, theoretisch, spekulativ |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does notional come from?
From notion + -al.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).