Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Being, relating to, or resembling a chimera: This describes something that is like a mythical chimera, which is a fire-breathing monster from Greek mythology composed of parts from different animals (commonly a lion, a goat, and a serpent). By extension, it describes something that is fantastical, unreal, or wildly imaginative.
   • Hopelessly or fantastically impractical; illusory: This meaning describes an idea, plan, or hope that is fanciful, impossible to achieve, or existing only in the imagination.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • The artist's vision was chimeral, blending human and machine forms in impossible ways. (The artist's idea was fantastical and unreal.)
  • His plan for a perpetual motion machine is purely chimeral; it defies the laws of physics. (His plan is illusory and impossible.)
  • The chimeral creature in the story had the wings of an eagle and the body of a lion. (The creature was a fantastical hybrid.)

Advanced Usage

• "Chimeral nature": The quality of being fantastical or composed of disparate parts.
  • The chimeral nature of the proposal made it difficult for the committee to take it seriously. (The proposal's fantastical, impractical quality made it seem unserious.)
• Used in formal, literary, or academic contexts to critique ideas or describe imaginative creations.

Variants and Related Words

• Chimera (noun): 1. The mythological monster. 2. A thing that is hoped or wished for but is illusory or impossible to achieve.
  • Pursuing that goal is a chimera. (Pursuing that goal is pursuing an impossible dream.)
• Chimerical (adjective): This is a more common variant with the same meaning as "chimeral."
  • His chimerical schemes never came to fruition. (His wildly impractical plans never succeeded.)

Synonyms

• Illusory: Based on illusion; not real.
• Fantastical: Imaginative or fanciful; remote from reality.
• Utopian: Modeled on or aiming for a state of perfection, especially idealistic but impractical.
• Visionary (when implying impracticality): Having original ideas but often not practical.
• Mythical: Existing only in myth; imaginary.

Antonyms

• Practical: Likely to succeed or be effective in real circumstances.
• Realistic: Having a sensible and practical idea of what can be achieved.
• Feasible: Possible to do easily or conveniently.
• Tangible: Perceptible by touch; clear and definite; real.

Related Idioms and Phrases

• "A chimera": Often used as a noun phrase to denote an impossible hope or fantasy.
  • The idea of a completely peaceful world is, sadly, often considered a chimera. (The idea is often considered an impossible dream.)
• "Chimerical dream": A hopelessly unrealistic aspiration.
  • He spent his life chasing a chimerical dream of absolute power. (He pursued an illusory dream.)

Adjective

1. being or relating to or like a chimera
   • his Utopia is not as chimeric commonwealth but a practical improvement on what already exists- Douglas Bush