Therapeutic Vs. Therapeutical: Meaning And Differences

Therapeutic vs. therapeutical, which is the correct adjective for the word therapy? Are both words valid? You are in the right place to get clarification because we will answer these questions and reveal much more.

As an adjective, therapeutic means “having a positive effect on the mind or body” or “relating to therapy.” However, this word is also a noun, meaning “a therapeutic agent or medicine.” In contrast, therapeutical is an alternative adjective for therapy, meaning “relating to or involved in therapy.

When you read these words, therapeutic and therapeutical, it is easy to assume that one is incorrect and the other is not. However, there is more to these words than meets the eye. Read on as we detail these two words’ definitions, usage, and differences.

Definitions Of Therapeutic And Therapeutical

Something that connects the words therapeutical and therapeutic is that they are both adjectives of the word therapy. So, let’s start this section by defining the word therapy.

Therapy is the attempted remediation of health problems featuring elements like diagnosis and treatment. In a sentence, “Sandy went through therapy for three months after her injury.” Another meaning of the word therapy is “a healing power or quality of something.” Let’s look at a sentence example, “Music has a therapy element.” (Meaning music has some comforting or healing power).

Now that you understand the meaning of therapy, we can comfortably start discussing the words therapeutic and therapeutical. So, here are the definitions of the words therapeutic and therapeutical:

Definition Of Therapeutic

This word is majorly an adjective meaning “of/relating to the treating and curing of illnesses.” For example, in a sentence, “The therapeutic exercises did not work for Jane as they did for Mercy.”

Also, as an adjective, this word means “having or exhibiting healing or therapy powers.” Let’s look at a sentence example, “The exercises are incredibly therapeutic.”

Another therapeutic meaning is “serving to preserve health” or “serving to cure or heal.” Here is an example in a sentence, “The doctor recommended a therapeutic abortion to the conservative patient, and it did not go well.”

As a noun, the word therapeutic means “a drug or a therapeutic agent.” For example, “An excellent example of a therapeutic agent is a heating pad.”

Definition Of Therapeutical

Therapeutical is an alternative spelling for the word therapeutic. We scoured numerous sources and discovered that this word comes up as a synonym for therapeutic. Therefore, it is safe to say that these words have the same meanings. So, the meanings for therapeutic above also apply here.

How To Properly Use Therapeutic And Therapeutical In A Sentence

We have mentioned severally in this post that therapeutic and therapeutical are adjectives. An adjective is a word that helps readers imagine situations, characters, or settings. In simpler terms, they describe or modify other words, especially nouns.

Note that there are various types of adjectives. The words therapeutic and therapeutical are descriptive adjectives because they express the quality or attribute of a noun. For example, “The new therapeutic XR machine is expensive.”

The word therapeutic in this sentence describes the attributes of the XR machine. With this information in mind, let us now explain how you can use these words in sentences.

How To Use The Word Therapeutic

As an adjective, you can use this word in the following ways:

• To modify a noun in a sentence. For example, “Jane does therapeutic exercises every morning.” In this sentence, the adjective “therapeutic” explains the nature of the noun “exercises.” So, it is a noun modifier.
• As a complement to linking verbs. For example, “The heating pad feels therapeutic on my inflamed leg.” In this sentence, the word “feels” is a linking verb, and “therapeutic” is a verb that complements it. So, this adjective is somehow predictive as it predicts the possible effects of using the heating pad.

Note: A predicate adjective modifies the subject of a sentence and usually comes after a linking verb in a sentence. So besides being a descriptive adjective, this word is also a predicate adjective.

Sometimes adjectives can function as nouns in sentences. This is the case with the word therapeutic because dictionaries describe it as an adjective/noun. It is hard for most people to wrap their heads around the fact that a noun can be an adjective and vice versa. However, it is quite simple and 100% possible.

When using this word as a noun, its placement will change in a sentence. For example, “The company has spent millions of dollars to make it therapeutic.” In this sentence, “therapeutic” is a noun.

As a noun, use the term in its plural form (therapeutics). For example, “The therapeutics do not work as we expected.”

How To Use The Word Therapeutical

Since the word therapeutical and therapeutic are synonyms, their applications in sentences are the same. Therefore, apply the tips explained above when using this word in sentences. However, you should note that you cannot use therapeutical as a noun. This is one of the key differences between these words.

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Therapeutic Vs. Therapeutical: More To Know When Comparing These Words

Therapeutic and therapeutical are synonyms of each other. That means they share the same meanings. The sections above explain this excellently. However, here are a few other things you should know about these words:

Spelling

The difference between the spellings for these words is quite simple. Once you master the spelling of therapeutic, then you can easily spell its synonym adjective. The second word is basically “therapeutic” plus the suffix “-al.”

The Suffix “-al”

The suffix “-al” is the key difference between these two words. “-Al” is a forming adjective from nouns and other adjectives, meaning “of, like, related to, about, or pertaining to.” It originated in Middle English. This adjective-forming suffix also has French and Latin origins. It comes from the Latin “-alis.”

Pronunciations

The proper pronunciation for the word therapeutic is “/ther-uh-pyoo-tik/.” In contrast, the correct pronunciation for the word therapeutical is “/ther-uh-pyoo-tik-al/.”

Number Of Syllables

Something else you can use to differentiate these words is their number of syllables. The word therapeutic has four syllables, “ther-a-peu-tic.” In contrast, the word “therapeutical” has five syllables, “ther-a-peu-ti-cal.”

Popularity

The word therapeutic is more popular than therapeutical. Therefore, most people prefer using it over its counterpart. You will also realize that most teachers prefer teaching about the term therapeutic.

List Of Examples Of Therapeutic And Therapeutical In Sentences

Since these words are correct and accepted in English, you can use either in sentences. Let us look at some sentence examples:

Example sentences of the word therapeutic

1. John will not leave his house without his therapeutic dog.
2. The therapeutic chair is surprisingly expensive.
3. My mum’s therapeutic heating pad is missing from her room.
4. The doctor will recommend therapeutic exercises for the student recovering from surgery.
5. I credit my quick recovery to the therapeutic exercises the doctor had me do.

Example sentences of the word therapeutical

1. Watching the conversation between Jennette McCurdy and Maying Bialik was so therapeutical.
2. The show has a therapeutical effect.
3. I want to advance my studies with a masters in therapeutical sciences.
4. Researchers have discovered therapeutical qualities in Chamomile.
5. Watching the sunset and sunrise can be therapeutical, especially if you suffer from stress and anxiety.

Conclusion

Therapeutic and therapeutical are both correct English words. You will immediately discover their relationship if you search for them in the dictionary. Besides this, this article discusses several other exciting facts about these words and how you can use them in sentences.

However, most dictionaries will refer you to the word therapeutic when you search for either of the two terms. It’s the most recognized word in English-speaking countries.