- extremely delicate or refined; exquisite
- almost as light as air; impalpable; airy
- celestial or spiritual
- of, containing, or dissolved in an ether, esp diethyl ether: an ethereal solution
- of or relating to the ether
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
e•the•re•al /ɪˈθɪriəl/USA pronunciation
adj.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- light;
airy;
extremely delicate: ethereal beauty.
e•the•re•al
(i thēr′ē əl),USA pronunciation adj.
e•the′re•al′i•ty, e•the′re•al•ness, n.
e•the′re•al•ly, adv.
e•the′re•ous, adj.
- light, airy, or tenuous:an ethereal world created through the poetic imagination.
- extremely delicate or refined:ethereal beauty.
- heavenly or celestial:gone to his ethereal home.
- of or pertaining to the upper regions of space.
- Chemistrypertaining to, containing, or resembling ethyl ether.
- Greek aithérios), equivalent. to aether- ether + -eus adjective, adjectival suffix + -al1
- Latin aethere(us) (
- 1505–15
e•the′re•al•ly, adv.
e•the′re•ous, adj.
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
ethereal /ɪˈθɪərɪəl/ adj
'ethereal' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
aerial
- celesta
- etherealize
- influence
- translunar
- aery
- angelic
- celestial
- ichor
- mystic
- spiritous
- spiritual
- spirituel
- substantial