imagine

American  

[ih-maj-in] / ɪˈmædʒ ɪn /

verb (used with object)

• imagines,
  present (3rd person singular)
• imagined,
  past participle,  past
• imagining
  present participle

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.

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verb (used without object)

• imagines,
  present (3rd person singular)
• imagined,
  past participle,  past
• imagining
  present participle

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

2. to suppose; think; conjecture.

imagine British  

/ 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

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

Usage

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.

Synonym Usage

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.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

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

Inflected Forms

Participles

• imagining
  present
• imagined
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• imagine
  simple
• imagines
  simple
• have imagined
  perfect
• has imagined
  perfect
• am imagining
  progressive
• are imagining
  progressive
• is imagining
  progressive
• have been imagining
  perfect progressive
• has been imagining
  perfect progressive

Past

• imagined
  simple
• had imagined
  perfect
• was imagining
  progressive
• were imagining
  progressive
• had been imagining
  perfect progressive

Future

• will imagine
  simple
• will have imagined
  perfect
• will be imagining
  progressive
• will have been imagining
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of imagine

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

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Explanation

To imagine something is to picture it in your head. When we imagine things, we're using our imagination. The word image is a good clue to the meaning of imagine, a word for picturing or envisioning things. You could imagine you're a king, an astronaut, a firefighter, or a coyote. You could imagine the earth getting hit by an asteroid. If you can think of it, you can imagine it. Sometimes, imagining means believing or guessing. For example, your teacher could say, "Did you really imagine there would be no homework?"

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

imagine imagines imagined imagining

Given the AI industry’s hostility toward intellectual property rights, it’s not a stretch to imagine that a major player may have trained its models on some of the most famous songs in recorded music history.

From Salon ● Oct. 30, 2026

The heat-scarred cone resembles a large child’s toy, and it’s hard to imagine what Ham must have been thinking and feeling strapped to the small couch visible inside the capsule.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 28, 2026

She used to ride her pink Huffy bike and imagine Cold War enemies in suburban traffic.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 28, 2026

"And as you can imagine there are incredible things to see - choughs and white-tailed eagles."

From BBC ● Oct. 27, 2026

“I can’t imagine carrying something like that on a Glitch,” I said, eyeing the camera.

From "Glitch" by Laura Martin

The figure helps introduce the exhibition’s exploration of humanity’s relationship to nature; Albuquerque imagines the character as the maker of her landscape projects and considers her an alter ego.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 13, 2026

Ms. Li instead imagines Adelaide’s coming of age.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026

He imagines Meta has been working on the camera-free glasses for several years, and the current backlash over privacy provides "fantastic timing" for their release.

From BBC ● Sep. 24, 2026

I am not the fan that the NFL pictures when it imagines its fans.

From Salon ● Sep. 9, 2026

He imagines his father, in his twenties as Gogol is now, sitting on a train as Gogol had just been, reading a story, and then suddenly nearly killed.

From "The Namesake" by Jhumpa Lahiri

In an opening scene of Modern Warfare 4, video of rescue efforts from the 2022 disaster in Itaewon, South Korea, is used to show the aftermath of an imagined attack from North Korea.

From BBC ● Oct. 29, 2026

You wouldn’t have imagined anything major to come out of any contest, any seat.

From Slate ● Oct. 29, 2026

"AI, cloud, connected devices, connectivity even from space and digital services not yet imagined."

From Barron's ● Oct. 28, 2026

Executive education programs are flourishing as business leaders confront an AI landscape they couldn’t have imagined when they were last in a classroom.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 22, 2026

He’d never imagined he’d go to one country outside the United States, let alone two.

From "The Way to Rio Luna" by Zoraida Cordova

“We’ve got to get a limiter or something,” he added, laughing, before imagining the visitors who will surely request that the volume be turned down.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 21, 2026

A third disc, “The Stranger in the House,” finds Costello imagining another potential career for himself as a professional songwriter.

From Salon ● Oct. 14, 2026

This is the problem with imagining hospitality as another task that can be optimized.

From Salon ● Oct. 11, 2026

She may also have to devote precious time to the practical task of showcasing the condo for sale, and emptying years of living that would prevent a buyer from imagining themselves living there.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 25, 2026

He closed his eyes, imagining that he had enormous wings that would take him soaring into the sky.

From "I Survived the Sinking of the Titanic, 1912" by Lauren Tarshis

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