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idea

noun

Simple meaning

More generally, any result of mental activity.

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

eyedeeuh

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US device voice
IPA pronunciation (US)

aɪˈdiə

This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

noun

  1. More generally, any result of mental activity; a thought, a notion; a way of thinking.

  2. A conception in the mind of something to be done; a plan for doing something, an intention.

  3. A purposeful aim or goal; intent

  4. An image of an object that is formed in the mind or recalled by the memory.

  5. A vague or fanciful notion; a feeling or hunch; an impression.

  6. Acronym of International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance.

Word at a Glance

Difficulty
A1 · Beginner (estimated)
Frequency
Very Common
Typical Use
General English

Word Aura™

How this word commonly comes across.

Aura for this meaning

This meaning: A conception in the mind of something to be done; a plan for doing something, an intention.

Used this way, idea is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.

Emotional tone
Neutral
Formality
Neutral
Intensity
Not strongly marked
How common
Moderately common
Connotation
Matter-of-fact
Usage feel
Neutral and straightforward

Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.

More ways to use idea

  • “It was not a good idea.”noun
  • “He has an idea that we don't like him.”noun

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Common Patterns and Combinations

How this word naturally appears with others.

Generally

general idea

Content

main idea

Other combinations

good ideasome ideanew ideabasic ideaclear ideawhole idea

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Word Family

Related forms, grouped by how they connect.

Related words

Connected by subject or meaning, not by word formation.

  • idealnounRelated term

    The idea of something that is perfect.

  • idealismnounRelated term

    The philosophical theory that ideas are the only reality.

  • idealisticadjectiveRelated term

    Of or relating to the philosophical doctrine of the reality of ideas.

More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin

Synonyms

Sense: more generally or any result of mental activity

thought

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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.