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ideal (adj.)
early 15c., "pertaining to an archetype or model," from Late Latin idealis "existing in idea," from Latin idea in the Platonic sense (see idea). Senses "conceived as perfect; existing only in idea," are from 1610s.
ideal (n.)
"(hypothetical) perfect person, thing, or state," 1796, in a translation of Kant, from ideal (adj.). Hence "standard or model of perfection" (1849).
updated on October 29, 2020
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Dictionary entries near ideal
Idaho
-ide
ide
idea
ideagenous
ideal
idealism
idealist
idealistic
ideality
idealization