Since the first humans inhabited the planet, we have always had someone who pushed the envelope and thought outside the box. While some see these people as geniuses others see them as crazy. The question must be asked if these people who changed our lives time and time again were imaginative...or fanciful? The answer to this question and the distinction between the words lies in what those ‘geniuses’ gave us or what they tried to, as well as their thoughts.
Just what do imaginative and fanciful mean? Not surprisingly, their definitions are very similar. However, there is one key difference. While both deal with one’s imagination, imaginative is characterized by or bearing evidence of imagination (dictionary.com). It expresses a person’s imagination and creativity whereas fanciful, marked by fancy or unrestrained imagination rather than by reason and experience (Webster Dictionary), takes it too far, to the point where the thought or idea will usually never be real.
Imaginative and fanciful are both adjectives. Fanciful is rarely used and is elevated English while imaginative is used a lot and is considered standard English. Imaginative, which came from french in late 14c., has been around for a while with its meaning staying the same, which is having or showing creativity and imagination, and fanciful, which came from the combination of fancy + -ful in the 1620s.
The connotation of the words, much like their definitions, are similar. Both have the connotation of imaginary or have imaginary characteristics, with imaginative having a more positive connotation and fanciful having a more negative one. The words show inventiveness and creativeness, but with imaginative, the ideas are also productive and be put to good use. Both words are more abstract because they refer to ideas and thoughts rather than objects. However, when it comes to being specific or general, you can clearly see imaginative as general and fanciful as specific. For example, in the quote: “Children are so creative and imaginative that they just bring you to life all over again.”(Moira Kelly), fanciful couldn’t work due to its negative connotation. Another example would be to take a simple animal, like a horse, and giving it wings or the ability to speak to show imaginative. However, giving it too much, like laser eyes, robotic wings, and a magical horn would make it become fanciful.
The distinction between the words imaginative and fanciful lies on the the question “Can it become a reality?” Anyone can see the distinction. Although both words express creativity and imagination, the underlying difference is the respect that comes from the words. Imaginative has more respect than fanciful. This cause those who are imaginative to be seen as geniuses and those who are fanciful to be seen as crazy.
Just what do imaginative and fanciful mean? Not surprisingly, their definitions are very similar. However, there is one key difference. While both deal with one’s imagination, imaginative is characterized by or bearing evidence of imagination (dictionary.com). It expresses a person’s imagination and creativity whereas fanciful, marked by fancy or unrestrained imagination rather than by reason and experience (Webster Dictionary), takes it too far, to the point where the thought or idea will usually never be real.
Imaginative and fanciful are both adjectives. Fanciful is rarely used and is elevated English while imaginative is used a lot and is considered standard English. Imaginative, which came from french in late 14c., has been around for a while with its meaning staying the same, which is having or showing creativity and imagination, and fanciful, which came from the combination of fancy + -ful in the 1620s.
The connotation of the words, much like their definitions, are similar. Both have the connotation of imaginary or have imaginary characteristics, with imaginative having a more positive connotation and fanciful having a more negative one. The words show inventiveness and creativeness, but with imaginative, the ideas are also productive and be put to good use. Both words are more abstract because they refer to ideas and thoughts rather than objects. However, when it comes to being specific or general, you can clearly see imaginative as general and fanciful as specific. For example, in the quote: “Children are so creative and imaginative that they just bring you to life all over again.”(Moira Kelly), fanciful couldn’t work due to its negative connotation. Another example would be to take a simple animal, like a horse, and giving it wings or the ability to speak to show imaginative. However, giving it too much, like laser eyes, robotic wings, and a magical horn would make it become fanciful.
The distinction between the words imaginative and fanciful lies on the the question “Can it become a reality?” Anyone can see the distinction. Although both words express creativity and imagination, the underlying difference is the respect that comes from the words. Imaginative has more respect than fanciful. This cause those who are imaginative to be seen as geniuses and those who are fanciful to be seen as crazy.
