irrational Hear it!

irrational Definition

ir·ra·tional (i ras̸h′ə nəl)

adjective

  1. lacking the power to reason
  2. contrary to reason; senseless; unreasonable; absurd
  3. Math. designating a real number not expressible as an integer or as a quotient of two integers: √ and pi are irrational numbers

Etymology: ME < L irrationalis: see in- & rational

irrational Related Forms

ir·ra′·tion·al′·ity (--ə nal′ə tē) noun pl. -·ties ir·ra′·tion·ally adverb

irrational Synonyms

irrational

modif.

  1. Illogical

    unreasonable, specious, fallacious, untenable; see illogical, wrong 2.

  2. Stupid

    senseless, silly, ridiculous, absurd; see stupid 1.

irrational implies mental unsoundness or may be used to stress the utterly illogical nature of that which is directly contrary to reason an irrational belief that everybody was his enemy; unreasonable implies bad judgment, willfulness, prejudice, etc. as responsible for that which is not justified by reason unreasonable demands

irrational Usage Examples

Adjective complement with noun phrase

make: And this confusion stems from the politicization of religion which has made people irrational, emotional and defensive about Islam.

Modifies a noun

  • exuberance: First, it has marked the end of irrational exuberance in high tech stocks.
  • hatred: You are letting your irrational hatred of religion show itself too crudely here.
  • fear: A whole host of irrational fears raise their ugly heads.
  • outburst: Luddite demonstrations were not irrational outbursts as has often been assumed.
  • superstition: He saw that the best education - for people still went to finish their education in Athens - was no protection against irrational superstition.
  • dislike: He was one of those people to whom I took an instant and irrational dislike.

Modifying Another Word

  • utterly: Above all, whence came his apparently utterly irrational loathing of Jewish people?
  • seemingly: He said the act was " replete with seemingly irrational distinctions " .
  • fundamentally: Rational debate seems to be your reason, but on some topics you start from fundamentally irrational positions.
  • wholly: Stock market volatility is therefore of serious concern as investors, faced with financial turbulence, may behave in wholly irrational ways.
  • apparently: What then could have been his motive for his apparently irrational antics?
  • totally: The most common comment from people who have panic attacks is ' It's totally irrational ' , which is quite right.

Infinitive complement

  • feel: Nonetheless, if we do not survive, is it irrational to feel dismay at that prospect?
  • believe: It is irrational to believe that imaginary entities are real.

Used with adjective complement

  • appear: People under stress can be irritable, withdrawn, appear irrational, aggressive or even violent.
  • seem: God could not have intended Nature or His Holy Word to seem irrational.
  • become: This is a case where the agent becomes irrational.
  • consider: If we do this on the basis of capacities, particularly rationality, where does this leave humans who might be considered irrational?

Preposition: in

sense: Emotions are not irrational in the sense of preventing optimal functioning; on the contrary, they serve important functions in everyday life.