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Pragmatic vs Pragmatical - What's the difference?

pragmatic | pragmatical |

As adjectives the difference between pragmatic and pragmatical

is that pragmatic is practical, concerned with making decisions and actions that are useful in practice, not just theory while pragmatical is pragmatic; practical; businesslike.

pragmatic

English

Alternative forms

* pragmatick (archaic) * pragmatique (obsolete)

Adjective

(en adjective)
  • Practical, concerned with making decisions and actions that are useful in practice, not just theory.
  • * The sturdy furniture in the student lounge was pragmatic , but unattractive.
  • *
  • Nor indeed are these restrictions pragmatic'' in nature: i.e. the ill-formedness of the ''heed''-sentences in (60) is entirely different in kind from the oddity of sentences like:
    (61)      !That man will eat any car which thinks he?s stupid
    which is purely ''pragmatic
    (i.e. lies in the fact that (61) describes the kind of bizarre situation which just doesn?t happen in the world we are familiar with, where cars don?t think, and people don?t eat cars).
  • philosophical; dealing with causes, reasons, and effects, rather than with details and circumstances; said of literature.
  • * Sir W. Hamilton
  • Pragmatic history.
  • * M. Arnold
  • Pragmatic poetry.

    Synonyms

    * (practical) down-to-earth, functional, practical, utilitarian, realistic

    Antonyms

    * idealistic

    Derived terms

    * pragma * pragmatically * pragmaticism * pragmatics

    pragmatical

    English

    Adjective

    (en adjective)
  • pragmatic; practical; businesslike
  • * Milton
  • We cannot therefore always be contemplative, or pragmatical abroad, but have need of some delightful intermissions
  • * Hare
  • Low, pragmatical , earthly views of the gospel.
  • (legal) Relating to affairs of state.
  • (obsolete) officious; fussy; meddlesome
  • * Sir Walter Scott
  • Pragmatical officers of justice.
  • * Arbuthnot
  • The fellow grew so pragmatical that he took upon him the government of my whole family.