How to Use theoretical in a Sentence

theoretical

adjective
  • The idea is purely theoretical at this point.
  • The danger is more than just a theoretical possibility.
  • On a theoretical level, hiring more people seems logical.
  • That’s not theoretical, that’s the work in front of me this week.
    — Daren Smith, IndieWire, 27 May 2026
  • But the new one is no longer theoretical.
    — Ingmar Rentzhog, Forbes.com, 15 May 2026
  • Warp drives have been a dream of sci-fi nerds and theoretical physicists alike for decades now.
    — Jackie Appel, Popular Mechanics, 9 May 2023
  • That’s all in the realm of the theoretical, though, a question for down the road.
    — Eric Walden, The Salt Lake Tribune, 19 Aug. 2022
  • In just over a week, this problem would no longer be theoretical.
    — Samantha Guff, CNN, 5 July 2020
  • But even on a theoretical level, how might the two be linked?
    — Jamie Ducharme, Health, 28 Aug. 2025
  • So these are these weird theoretical bridges shortcuts in space and time.
    — Tulika Bose, Scientific American, 19 Aug. 2022
  • There might not be a theoretical limit to the height from which a cat can fall and survive.
    — The Atlantic Science Desk, The Atlantic, 30 Dec. 2022
  • And the chaos is no longer theoretical.
    — Wyles Daniel may 19, Miami Herald, 19 May 2026
  • Now a new theoretical study delves deeper into what can be said about the jumps and when.
    — Eleni Petrakou, Scientific American, 29 Dec. 2020
  • Who could a theoretical player be in a deal?
    — Nick Harris, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 6 Mar. 2026
  • Now the county will need to move from the theoretical to the concrete.
    — Chicago Tribune, 1 July 2022
  • This theoretical version of our watery world is known as the geoid.
    — Brooke Jarvis, The New Yorker, 19 Aug. 2024
  • For a child who is struggling, time isn’t theoretical.
    — Angelette C. Aviles, Baltimore Sun, 7 Apr. 2026
  • And none of us could have imagined that our theoretical models would fit the data so well.
    — Ashley Strickland, CNN Money, 3 May 2025
  • This is not a theoretical need.
    — Crystal Hudson, New York Daily News, 1 Apr. 2026
  • All of this is very theoretical.
    — Jim Cramer, CNBC, 14 Dec. 2025
  • So much of what the city is now was still theoretical then, less reality than dream.
    — Zach Osterman, The Indianapolis Star, 2 Apr. 2021
  • And this is no longer theoretical.
    — James Felton Keith, Forbes.com, 11 Sep. 2025
  • That gap is no longer theoretical.
    — Cindy Rodriguez Constable, Forbes.com, 25 June 2026
  • But the question is not theoretical for him.
    — Literary Hub, 25 Mar. 2026
  • The facts are no longer theoretical.
    — Joshua Kloke, New York Times, 30 Apr. 2026
  • The threat is no longer theoretical.
    — Denis Mandich, Forbes.com, 2 Sep. 2025
  • That growth is not just theoretical.
    — Paulina Likos, CNBC, 17 Sep. 2025
  • Mind you, this is all theoretical.
    — Phil Plait, Scientific American, 27 Mar. 2026
  • These risks are no longer theoretical.
    — Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim, Time, 20 Jan. 2026
  • There is no perfect answer, and any method is—at least in the theoretical sense—just as good as any other.
    — Matt Ford, Ars Technica, 22 June 2022

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'theoretical.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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