nominal
adjective
nom·i·nal
| \ ˈnä-mə-nᵊl
, ˈnäm-nəl\
, ˈnäm-nəl\
Definition of nominal
(Entry 1 of 2)
1
: of, relating to, or being a noun or a word or expression taking a noun construction
2a
: of, relating to, or constituting a name
b
: bearing the name of a person
3a
: existing or being something in name or form only
nominal head of his party
b
: of, being, or relating to a designated or theoretical size that may vary from the actual : approximate
the pipe's nominal size
c
: trifling, insignificant
his involvement was nominal charged only nominal rent
4 of a rate of interest
a
: equal to the annual rate of simple interest that would obtain if interest were not compounded when in fact it is compounded and paid for periods of less than a year
b
: equal to the percentage by which a repaid loan exceeds the principal borrowed with no adjustment made for inflation
5
: being according to plan : satisfactory
everything was nominal during the launch
nominal
noun
nom·i·nal
| \ ˈnä-mə-nᵊl
, ˈnäm-nəl\
, ˈnäm-nəl\
Definition of nominal (Entry 2 of 2)
: a word or word group functioning as a noun
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Examples of nominal in a Sentence
Adjective
What gave it resonance was that she was reflecting—in a fun-house mirror—the thuggish behavior of her nominal betters. — Hendrik Hertzberg, New Yorker, 5 Dec. 2005 Instead they will decentralize and devolve power, and rely on the people over whom they have nominal authority to be self-organizing. — Francis Fukuyama, Atlantic, May 1999 Approaching his 68th birthday, Rockefeller had never imagined that his twilight years would be so eventful. His fortune had failed to purchase him even a poor man's mite of tranquillity. As nominal president of Standard Oil, he was in a bind, responsible for actions he had not approved. — Ron Chernow, Business Week, 18 May 1998 Each of the ten years of nominal peace saw plenty of bloodshed. — Theodore Roosevelt, The Winning of the West: 1769-1776, (1894) 1995 Her title of vice president had been nominal only. They charge a nominal fee for the service.
Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective
Joining the XFL’s club in Carson would keep Jones in the soccer stadium where Team Spanos plays its nominal home games. — San Diego Union-Tribune, "Column: Behind Philip Rivers is a QB surprise, one the NFL and XFL may be examining," 26 Aug. 2019 My husband is still working and has a nominal pension from military retirement. — Liz Weston | Nerdwallet.com, oregonlive.com, "Liz Weston: First rule of friends/family loans is offer only what you can afford to lose.," 24 Aug. 2019 Owners unable to look after their old elephants can also hand them over for a nominal fee, Kerala forests and wildlife minister, K Raju, told the state legislative assembly. — Sangeeta Tanwar, Quartz India, "This elephant-obsessed Indian state is finally stepping in to protect abused captive animals," 13 June 2019 My husband is still working and has a nominal pension from military retirement. — Liz Weston, Los Angeles Times, "How to keep a loan to family from turning into a problem," 18 Aug. 2019 Qualifying families can receive a device at a nominal fee, which comes with one year of free technical support. — Laura Groch, San Diego Union-Tribune, "Low-cost computer distributions start Sept. 7," 17 Aug. 2019 Manfort was shadow-managing the Opposition Bloc’s nominal campaign, but Lyovochkin, who left Yanukovich’s side when authorities used violence against the Maidan protestors in early 2014, had stayed behind as Yanukovich fled to Russia. — Sam Patten, WIRED, "Kostya and Me: How Sam Patten Got Ensnared in Mueller’s Probe," 14 Aug. 2019 By Sunday, the separatist Southern Transitional Council (backed by the UAE) was effectively in control of Aden and its nominal ally, the government of exiled President Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi (backed by Saudi Arabia), was nowhere to be seen. — Sarah El Sirgany, CNN, "Yemen's civil war within a civil war," 12 Aug. 2019 The Revere comes with spacious outdoor balconies, expansive interiors, oversized closets and nominal 11-foot ceilings, some of the highest ceilings in the Houston condominium market. — Valerie Sweeten, Houston Chronicle, "Condo Life: Behind the scenes with Pelican Builders," 11 Aug. 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'nominal.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for nominal
nominal
adjective
English Language Learners Definition of nominal
formal
: existing as something in name only : not actual or real
: very small in amount
See the full definition for nominal in the English Language Learners Dictionary
nominal
adjective
nom·i·nal
| \ ˈnä-mə-nᵊl
\
\
Kids Definition of nominal
1
: existing as something in name only
He was the nominal head of the government.
2
: very small
There's just a nominal fee.