INSUBSTANTIAL


Meaning of INSUBSTANTIAL in English

/ ˌɪnsəbˈstænʃl; NAmE / adjective

1.

not very large, strong or important :

an insubstantial construction of wood and glue

an insubstantial argument

2.

( literary ) not real or solid :

as insubstantial as a shadow

••

WORD ORIGIN

early 17th cent.: from late Latin insubstantialis , from in- not + substantialis (from substantia being, essence, from substant- standing firm, from the verb substare ).

Oxford Advanced Learner's English Dictionary.      Оксфордский английский словарь для изучающик язык на продвинутом уровне.