optional B2 Topic:Space, Position & Direction US /ˈɑp.ʃə.nəl/ UK /ˈɒp.ʃə.nəl/ See IPA manual Freq #21644 Meanings 1 adj Not required; left to your own choice. Attendance at the evening session is optional. 2 noun Something that is not compulsory, especially part of a course. She took two optionals alongside her core subjects. Thesaurus Synonyms 1 adj · not required; left to your... electivediscretionary ↔ Opposites compulsorymandatorynon-optionalnonoptionalobligateobligatoryrequiredrequisite Etymology AI details From option + -al. Topics Space, Position & Direction External links Cambridge Dictionary Wiktionary Google Images # optional **Type:** Word **Level:** B2 **Part of speech:** adj, noun **IPA (US):** /ˈɑp.ʃə.nəl/ **IPA (UK):** /ˈɒp.ʃə.nəl/ **Frequency rank:** 21644 ## Meanings 1. Not required; left to your own choice. 2. Something that is not compulsory, especially part of a course. ## Examples - Attendance at the evening session is optional. - She took two optionals alongside her core subjects. ## Antonyms - compulsory - mandatory - non-optional - nonoptional - obligate - obligatory - required - requisite ## Etymology From option + -al. ## AI Etymology Optional comes from option + -al. Modern senses include not required; left to your own choice and something that is not compulsory, especially part of a course. ## Topics - Space, Position & Direction markdown