rationality

Definition of rationalitynext

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of rationality This is an unusual position for an exponent of the public sphere and communicative rationality to take. Sean Williams, Harpers Magazine, 27 Jan. 2026 This is where balance and ratios come in again, bringing rationality into the world. Thomas Patier, Artforum, 27 Jan. 2026 The world is full of bad actors—cheats, liars, tyrants, sickos—who are, ultimately, mere human beings; at least, this was how rationality would have it. Joshua Rothman, New Yorker, 23 Jan. 2026 The Democrats have a rare opportunity to fill the void of economic rationality left by the traditionally pro-business GOP by moving toward the political center and working with the business community. Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Time, 13 Jan. 2026 See All Example Sentences for rationality
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rationality
Noun
  • The residents are owed answers, even while understanding the reasonableness of not knowing all of them just yet.
    Sam McDowell, Kansas City Star, 23 Apr. 2026
  • Choosing life over glory is reasonableness in action.
    Nikhil Krishnan, New Yorker, 20 Apr. 2026
Noun
  • Keep the conversation moving, and let flexibility strengthen your position and perspective while maintaining your sense of balance and fairness.
    Tarot.com, Hartford Courant, 3 May 2026
  • While the work’s English title might indicate a sense of amusement or distraction, the Chinese title is an idiom that refers to being caught in a dilemma, like a boat that has left one shore but has not yet reached the other.
    Pauline J. Yao, Artforum, 2 May 2026
Noun
  • In Hinckley's case, prosecutors had to prove sanity beyond a reasonable doubt.
    Katrina Kaufman, CBS News, 28 Apr. 2026
  • In Joseph Heller’s novel, claiming to be crazy is taken as evidence of sanity.
    Fintan O’Toole, The New York Review of Books, 25 Apr. 2026
Noun
  • Carly loves playing hostess, and designs interiors above all with socializing in mind—the conversation pit is one of her favorite midcentury tropes.
    Olivia Kan-Sperling, Artforum, 2 May 2026
  • Andrillon warned against trying to harness the sleeping mind in the service of the waking world.
    Shayla Love, New Yorker, 1 May 2026
Noun
  • The assassination attempt failed — and Hinckley was arrested, tried and found not guilty by reason of insanity in 1982.
    Kelsie Cairns, FOXNews.com, 29 Apr. 2026
  • McCollum’s line was one of the biggest reasons the game never got complicated.
    C.J. Holmes, New York Daily News, 29 Apr. 2026

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Rationality.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rationality. Accessed 8 May. 2026.

More from Merriam-Webster on rationality

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster