Synonyms for ethereal
- adjective
Most common
airy delicate vaporous insubstantial other-worldly spiritual heavenly
Synonyms by meaning
Adjective
1. Airy — consisting of ether; hence, exceedingly light or airy; tenuous; spiritlike; characterized by extreme…
airy, delicate, diaphanous formal, vaporous, insubstantial, aerial, light, unreal, subtle, immaterial, fine, gaseous, tenuous, aeriform, volatile, aery formal, pneumatic, subtile, vaporlike US, vapourlike UK, aereous, flimsy, unsubstantial dated
2. Spiritual — pertaining to the immaterial realm, as symbolically represented by, or (in earlier epochs) conflated with…
other-worldly, spiritual, mystical, incorporeal, transcendental, intangible, fey, irreal, supernatural, uncorporeal rare
3. Heavenly — pertaining to the presupposition of an invisible air-like element permeating all of space, or to the higher…
heavenly, celestial, etheric US, aetheric UK, supernal, seraphic, empyreal
Other
Definitions
- adj. 1
Pertaining to the presupposition of an invisible air-like element permeating all of space, or to the higher regions beyond the earth or beyond the atmosphere.
Near-synonyms: aereous, celestial
- adj. 2
Pertaining to the immaterial realm, as symbolically represented by, or (in earlier epochs) conflated with, such atmospheric and extra-atmospheric concepts.
Near-synonyms: celestial, incorporeal, insubstantial, intangible, spiritual, uncorporeal, mystical, otherworldly, transcendental; see also Thesaurus:cosmic
- adj. 3
Consisting of ether; hence, exceedingly light or airy; tenuous; spiritlike; characterized by extreme delicacy, as form, manner, thought, etc.
Related words
- Word family
- etherealize ethereality etherealness
- Other spellings
- aethereal aetherial
Example sentences
- delicate Oil on canvas can never paint a petal so delicate.
- airy The airy castle looked like a feudal fortress.
- insubstantial The judge found the evidence of his guilt insubstantial.
- spiritual They gave him both material and spiritual support.
Popularity over time
| Word | 1850 → 2019 | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| ethereal | rising | |
| delicate | steady | |
| airy | rising | |
| insubstantial | steady | |
| vaporous | steady | |
| spiritual | rising |
Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.
By length
- 3 letters
- fey1
- 4 letters
- fine1, airy2, aery
- 5 letters
- light1
- 6 letters
- subtle2, aerial3, unreal2, flimsy2, irreal
- 7 letters
- tenuous3, gaseous3, etheric, subtile, aereous
- 8 letters
- delicate3, heavenly3, volatile3, mystical3, gossamer3, vaporous, seraphic, supernal, empyreal, aeriform, aetheric
- 9 letters
- spiritual4, celestial3, pneumatic3, vaporlike
- 10 letters
- intangible4, immaterial5, diaphanous4, vapourlike
- 11 letters
- incorporeal, uncorporeal, translunary
- 12 letters
- supernatural5
- 13 letters
- insubstantial4, unsubstantial
- 14 letters
- transcendental4
The small number after each word is its number of syllables (airy2 = 2 syllables).