practical
AdjectiveWordNet 3.0
Adjective (4)
- concerned with actual use or practice“he is a very practical person”“the idea had no practical application”“a practical knowledge of Japanese”“woodworking is a practical art”
- guided by practical experience and observation rather than theory“a hardheaded appraisal of our position”“a hard-nosed labor leader”“completely practical in his approach to business”“not ideology but pragmatic politics”Synonyms: hardheadedhard-nosedpragmatic
- being actually such in almost every respect“a practical failure”“the once elegant temple lay in virtual ruin”Synonyms: virtual(a)practical(a)
- having or put to a practical purpose or use“practical mathematics”“practical applications of calculus”
Webster's Dictionary (GCIDE)
Practical \Prac"ti*cal\, a. [L. practicus active, Gr. ? fit for doing or performing, practical, active, fr. ? to do, work, effect: cf. F. pratique, formerly also practique. Cf. Pragmatic, Practice.]
1.Of or pertaining to practice or action. [1913 Webster]
2.Capable of being turned to use or account; useful, in distinction from ideal or theoretical; as, practical chemistry. "Man's practical understanding." --South. "For all practical purposes." --Macaulay. [1913 Webster]
3.Evincing practice or skill; capable of applying knowledge to some useful end; as, a practical man; a practical mind. [1913 Webster]
4.Derived from practice; as, practical skill. [1913 Webster]
Practical joke, a joke put in practice; a joke the fun of which consists in something done, in distinction from something said; esp., a trick played upon a person. [1913 Webster]