01 a. Existing only in imagination or fancy; not real; fancied; visionary; ideal.
-
1.
Existing only in imagination or fancy; not real; fancied; visionary; ideal.“Wilt thou add to all the griefs I suffer Imaginary ills and fancied tortures?” — Addison.
Phrases & compounds
Imaginary calculus —
See under Calculus.
Imaginary expression [or] quantity —
an algebraic expression which involves the impossible operation of taking the square root of a negative quantity; as, √-9, a + b √-1.
Imaginary points, lines, surfaces, —
points, lines, surfaces, etc., imagined to exist, although by reason of certain changes of a figure they have in fact ceased to have a real existence.