incorporeal

adjective

in·​cor·​po·​re·​al ˌin-(ˌ)kȯr-ˈpȯr-ē-əl How to pronounce incorporeal (audio)
1
: not corporeal : having no material body or form
2
: of, relating to, or constituting a right that is based on property (such as bonds or patents) which has no intrinsic value
incorporeally adverb

Examples of incorporeal in a Sentence

ghosts are supposed to be incorporeal
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
In fact, magical life has the potential to be even more radically incorporeal than our own. Literary Hub, 26 June 2025 To the casual observer, the data industry can seem incorporeal, its products conjured out of weightless bits. IEEE Spectrum, 30 Oct. 2024 Indeed, in stark contrast to the incorporeal nature of a digital image, each of Winant’s photographs is, in a sense, a discrete body: a fallible material entity that boasts a hidden physical history and that will compositionally deteriorate over time. Jessica Simmons-Reid, Artforum, 1 June 2025 If reason teaches that God is incorporeal, this means that God has no body; God does not physically see, nor do people see God. Randy L. Friedman, The Conversation, 16 Feb. 2024 The digital files are incorporeal. BostonGlobe.com, 9 June 2021 The network is incorporeal. J.m. Ledgard, Wired, 12 May 2021 After all, if someone can live without a brain, this would seem to open the door to belief in an incorporeal soul. Neuroskeptic, Discover Magazine, 27 Jan. 2020 Their physical bodies — and your own — get entangled with those pictorial references to bodily experience, bringing a ghostly, incorporeal picture home. Christopher Knightart Critic, Los Angeles Times, 21 Mar. 2022

Word History

Etymology

Middle English incorporealle, from Anglo-French incorporel, from Latin incorporeus, from in- + corporeus corporeal

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of incorporeal was in the 15th century

Cite this Entry

“Incorporeal.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/incorporeal. Accessed 11 Jul. 2025.

Kids Definition

incorporeal

adjective
in·​cor·​po·​re·​al ˌin-(ˌ)kȯr-ˈpōr-ē-əl How to pronounce incorporeal (audio)
-ˈpȯr-
: having no material body or form : immaterial

Legal Definition

incorporeal

adjective
in·​cor·​po·​re·​al ˌin-kȯr-ˈpōr-ē-əl How to pronounce incorporeal (audio)
: not tangible : having no material body or form
incorporeal hereditaments
an incorporeal right
compare corporeal

More from Merriam-Webster on incorporeal

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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