What does "fantastic" mean?
A fanciful or whimsical person.
Fantastic
/fænˈtæstɪk/ adj, noun
adj, noun ·Common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A fanciful or whimsical person.
- Grammar: fantastic is listed as adj, noun.
- Nearest alternatives: wonderful, absurd, absurd, adroit.
- Useful contrasts: realistic, reasonable, sucktastic.
- Usage evidence: In terms of salary, that job is fantastic.
How to use "fantastic"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "fantastic" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "fantastic" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "fantastic" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "fantastic" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "fantastic" is acting as adj, noun in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "wonderful" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "fantastic", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A fanciful or whimsical person. archaic
Adjective
- 1 Wonderful; marvelous; excellent; extraordinarily good or great (used especially as an intensifier).
""I had a simply fantastic vacation, and I can't wait to tell you all about it!""
- 2 Existing in or constructed from fantasy; of or relating to fantasy; fanciful.
"He told fantastic stories of dragons and goblins."
- 3 Not believable; implausible; seemingly only possible in fantasy. archaic
"And indeed, when in the writings of Paracelſus I meet with ſuch Phantaſtick and Un-intelligible Diſcourſes as that Writer often puzzels and tyres his Reader with, father'd upon ſuch excellent Experiments, as though he ſeldom clearly teaches, I often find he knew ; me thinks the Chymiſts, in their ſearches after truth, are not unlike the Navigators of Solomons Tarſhiſh Fleet, who brought home from their long and tedious Voyages, not only Gold, and Silver, and Ivory, but Apes and Peacocks too ; For ſo the Writings of ſeveral (for I ſay not, all) of your Hermetick Philoſophers preſent us, together with divers Subſtantial and noble Experiments, Theories, which either like Peacocks feathers make a great ſhew, but are neither ſolid nor uſeful ; or elſe like Apes, if they have ſome appearance of being rational, are blemiſh'd with ſome abſurdity or other, that when they are Attentively conſider'd, makes them appear Ridiculous."
- 4 Resembling fantasies in irregularity, caprice, or eccentricity; irregular; grotesque. archaic
"There at the foot of yonder nodding beech, / That wreathes its old fantastic roots so high."
Adjective
- 1 ludicrously odd wordnet
- 2 extraordinarily good or great; used especially as intensifiers wordnet
- 3 extravagantly fanciful in design, construction, appearance wordnet
- 4 existing in fancy only wordnet
- 5 fanciful and unrealistic; foolish wordnet
Antonyms
Example
"In terms of salary, that job is fantastic."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "fantastic"?
Common synonyms include: wonderful, absurd, absurd, adroit, airy, alien.
How do you use "fantastic" in a sentence?
In terms of salary, that job is fantastic.
How do you pronounce "fantastic"?
Pronounced /fænˈtæstɪk/.
Etymology
Borrowed from Middle French fantastique, borrowed from Late Latin phantasticus, borrowed from Ancient Greek φᾰντᾰστῐκός (phăntăstĭkós, “imaginary, fantastic; fictional”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *bʰeh₂- (“to shine”). Equivalent to fantasy + -tic. Doublet of fantastique.