imagine

[ih-maj-in]

verb (used with object)

imagined, imagining 

1. to form a mental image of (something not actually present to the senses).

   Synonyms: picture, image

2. to think, believe, or fancy.

   He imagined the house was haunted.

3. to assume; suppose.

   I imagine they'll be here soon.

4. to conjecture; guess.

   I cannot imagine what you mean.

5. Archaic.,  to plan, scheme, or plot.

verb (used without object)

imagined, imagining 

1. to form mental images of things not present to the senses; use the imagination.

2. to suppose; think; conjecture.

imagine

/ ɪˈmædʒɪn /

verb

1. (when tr, may take a clause as object) to form a mental image of

2. (when tr, may take a clause as object) to think, believe, or guess

3. (tr; takes a clause as object) to suppose; assume

   I imagine he'll come

4. (tr; takes a clause as object) to believe or assume without foundation

   he imagines he knows the whole story

5. an archaic word for plot 1

1. Also: imagine that!. an exclamation of surprise

Other Word Forms

• imaginer noun
• preimagine verb (used with object)
• reimagine verb (used with object)
• unimagined adjective
• well-imagined adjective
• imaginable adjective
• imaginably adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of imagine¹

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English imaginen from Middle French imaginer from Latin imāginārī, equivalent to imāgin- (stem of imāgō ) image + -ā- thematic vowel + -rī infinitive ending

Word History and Origins

Origin of imagine¹

C14: from Latin imāginārī to fancy, picture mentally, from imāgō likeness; see _image

Synonym Study

Imagine, conceive, conceive of, realize refer to bringing something before the mind. To imagine is, literally, to form a mental image of something: to imagine yourself in London. To conceive is to form something by using one's imagination: How has the author conceived the first act of his play? To conceive of is to comprehend through the intellect something not perceived through the senses: Wilson conceived of a world free from war. To realize is to make an imagined thing real or concrete to oneself, to grasp fully its implications: to realize the extent of one's folly.

Example Sentences

So many of my dad’s stories about his youth were set at Carville that I’d been imagining it for my entire life, but he never said much about his time in the infirmary.

Read more on Salon

"Neural efficiency is as you might imagine, well connected by short paths, and the adolescent era is the only one in which this efficiency is increasing," said Mousley.

Read more on Science Daily

"Now that it's on the island of Ireland, they are very concerned, and I imagine they will be organising the availability of vaccines for their farmers," he said.

Read more on BBC

This is the spiritual birthplace of the fruity martini — the era of the Appletini, Watermelon Martini, Chocolate Martini, basically any flavor or color you could imagine, bartenders were making a “martini” out of it.

Read more on Salon

To visualize this density, imagine placing the solar system inside a cube one light-year on each side.

Read more on Science Daily

When To Use

What does imagine mean?

To imagine is to form a mental likeness of something or someone not present, as in Imagine flying in a rocket to Mars.To imagine also means to think of something, especially in a way that it is not currently, as in Imagine what the house might look like after all these years.To imagine is also to assume, as in Oh dear, the teacher imagined that we all did our homework.Finally, to imagine can mean to guess, as in Can you imagine what it would be like for it to snow in the summer?Example: I can’t imagine they will take much longer, so we should just wait here.