romantic

—romantically, adv. —romanticalness, n.

/roh man"tik/, adj.

1. of, pertaining to, or of the nature of romance; characteristic or suggestive of the world of romance: a romantic adventure.

2. fanciful; impractical; unrealistic: romantic ideas.

3. imbued with or dominated by idealism, a desire for adventure, chivalry, etc.

4. characterized by a preoccupation with love or by the idealizing of love or one's beloved.

5. displaying or expressing love or strong affection.

6. ardent; passionate; fervent.

7. (usually cap.) of, pertaining to, or characteristic of a style of literature and art that subordinates form to content, encourages freedom of treatment, emphasizes imagination, emotion, and introspection, and often celebrates nature, the ordinary person, and freedom of the spirit (contrasted with classical).

8. of or pertaining to a musical style characteristic chiefly of the 19th century and marked by the free expression of imagination and emotion, virtuosic display, experimentation with form, and the adventurous development of orchestral and piano music and opera.

9. imaginary, fictitious, or fabulous.

10. noting, of, or pertaining to the role of a suitor or lover in a play about love: the romantic lead.

n.

11. a romantic person.

12. a romanticist.

13. romantics, romantic ideas, ways, etc.

[1650-60; < F romantique, deriv. of romant ROMAUNT; see -IC]

Syn. 2. extravagant, exaggerated, wild, imaginative, fantastic. 9. improbable, unreal.

Ant. 2. practical, realistic. 9. probable.

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