emotional

adjective

emo·​tion·​al i-ˈmō-sh(ə-)nəl 

1

: of or relating to emotion

an emotional disorder

2

: dominated by or prone to emotion

an emotional person

3

: appealing to or arousing emotion

an emotional sermon

4

: markedly aroused or agitated in feeling or sensibilities

gets emotional at weddings

emotionally

i-ˈmō-sh(ə-)nə-lē 

adverb

Synonyms

• ardent
• blazing
• burning
• charged
• demonstrative
• fervent
• fervid
• feverish
• fiery
• flaming
• glowing
• hot-blooded
• impassioned
• incandescent
• intense
• passional
• passionate
• perfervid
• red-hot
• religious
• superheated
• torrid
• vehement
• warm
• warm-blooded

Examples of emotional in a Sentence

He's a very emotional person.

worship at revival meetings often takes a markedly emotional form

Recent Examples on the Web

Louis Vuitton was among the first to recognize how crucial a deep emotional connection is to a brand; the company launched its Travel Book collection in 2013. —R. Daniel Foster, Forbes.com, 1 Apr. 2025

That emotional connection is something Stacey Younge, a licensed clinical social worker and founder of Sixth Street Wellness, sees firsthand. —Danielle James, Vogue, 1 Apr. 2025

The new footage included an emotional scene of Chan’s Mr. Han paying his respects to the late Mr. Miyagi and bonding with Daniel LaRusso. —Ryan Gajewski, HollywoodReporter, 31 Mar. 2025

This allows creatives to focus on the emotional core of their stories. —Nancy Pulciano, Rolling Stone, 31 Mar. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1834, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing emotional

• emotional blackmail
• emotional intelligence
• emotional quotient
• hyper-emotional

Rhymes for emotional

• devotional
• promotional
• motional
• notional
• unemotional

Kids Definition

emotional

adjective

emo·​tion·​al i-ˈmō-shnəl 

-shən-ᵊl

1

: of or relating to the emotions

an emotional upset

2

: likely to show or express emotion : easily moved

an emotional person

3

: causing one to feel emotion

an emotional speech

emotionally

-ē 

adverb