Inklingo

How to Say "hypothetical" in Spanish

English → Spanish

hipotético

adjectiveB1
Use this word when referring to situations, ideas, or questions that are based on a theory, guess, or possibility rather than on actual fact.

Examples

Hablemos de un caso hipotético para entender el problema.

Let's talk about a hypothetical case to understand the problem.

imaginado

ee-mah-hee-NAH-dohima.xiˈna.ðo

adjectiveB1
Choose this word when the 'hypothetical' situation or thing is something that has been specifically created or conjured up in someone's imagination.
A colorful storybook illustration of a young child gazing upwards. Above the child's head, a translucent, glowing image of a fantastical floating island with a tiny castle appears, representing a thought or imagined concept.

Examples

El monstruo imaginado por el niño era verde y peludo.

The monster imagined by the boy was green and hairy.

Esa es solo una solución imaginada, no es práctica.

That is only an imagined solution; it's not practical.

Gender and Number Agreement

As an adjective, 'imaginado' must change its ending to match the noun it describes: 'imaginada' (f. singular), 'imaginados' (m. plural), 'imaginadas' (f. plural).

Forgetting the Agreement

Mistake: “La idea imaginado.”

Correction: La idea imaginada. (The ending must change from -o to -a to match 'idea'.)

Hipotético vs. Imaginado

Learners often mistakenly use 'imaginado' when they simply mean 'hypothetical' in a theoretical sense. Remember, 'imaginado' specifically implies something created by the mind, while 'hipotético' is a broader term for anything not currently real.

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