not based on fact or investigation; "a notional figure of cost helps in determining production costs"; "speculative knowledge" having descriptive value as distinguished from syntactic category; "sex is a notional category; gender is a syntactic one
being (or being of the nature of) a notion or concept; "a plan abstract and conceptional"; "to improve notional comprehension"; "a notional response to the question"
not based on fact; dubious; "the falsehood about some fanciful secret treaties"- F D Roosevelt; "a small child's imaginary friends"; "her imagined fame"; "to create a notional world for oneself"
Something that is notional exists only in theory or as a suggestion or idea, but not in reality. the notional value of state assets. = theoretical + notionally no·tion·al·ly those who notionally supported the republic but did nothing in terms of action That meant that he, notionally at least, outranked them all. = theoretically. existing only as an idea or plan, and not existing in reality