physical
adjective · noun
Simple meaning
About the world as understood through the senses rather than the mind.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
fizihkuhlSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈfɪzɪkəl
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.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
adjective
Pertaining to the world as understood through the senses rather than the mind; tangible, concrete; real. Having to do with the material world.
Relating to the sciences dealing with matter and energy; especially physics
In accordance with the laws of nature; now specifically, pertaining to physics.
Having to do with the body as opposed to the mind; corporeal, bodily.
Of matter and nature.
Involving the body as distinguished from the mind or spirit
noun
A physical examination.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- A2 · Elementary
- Frequency
- Very Common
- Typical Use
- Varies by meaning
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: Pertaining to the world as understood through the senses rather than the mind; tangible, concrete; real. Having to do with the material world.
Used this way, physical 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
- No strong connotation
- 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 physical
- “Regular physical activity is important for maintaining good health.”adjective
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Similar Words, What’s the Difference?
Close in meaning, but not always interchangeable.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Word family
Words built from the same root.
The branch of the biological sciences dealing with the functioning of organisms.
A licensed medical practitioner.
Related to Pertaining to the world as understood through the senses rather than the mind.
In accord with physical laws.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
The condition or state of the body or bodily functions.
The act of touching physically.
Training in the development of and care for the human body.
An entity that has physical existence.
The activity of exerting your muscles in various ways to keep fit.
The activity of exerting your muscles in various ways to keep fit.
Related words
Connected by subject or meaning, not by word formation.
Therapy that uses physical agents: exercise and massage and other modalities.
More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin
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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.