imagery

American  

[im-ij-ree, im-i-juh-ree] / ˈɪm ɪdʒ ri, ˈɪm ɪ dʒə ri /

noun

plural

imageries

1. the formation of mental images, figures, or likenesses of things, or of such images collectively.

   the dim imagery of a dream.

2. pictorial images, as in works of art.

3. the use of rhetorical images.

4. figurative description or illustration; rhetorical images collectively.

5. Psychology. mental images collectively, especially those produced by the action of imagination.

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imagery British  

/ ˈɪmɪdʒrɪ, -dʒərɪ /

noun

1. figurative or descriptive language in a literary work

2. images collectively

3. psychol

   1. the materials or general processes of the imagination

   2. the characteristic kind of mental images formed by a particular individual See also image imagination

4. military the presentation of objects reproduced photographically (by infrared or electronic means) as prints or electronic displays

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imagery Cultural  

1. The mental pictures created by a piece of writing: “The imagery of “The Waste Land” — crumbling towers, dried-up wells, toppled tombstones — conveys the author's sense of a civilization in decay.”

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Other Word Forms

• imagerial adjective
• imagerially adverb

Etymology

Origin of imagery

First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English imagerie, from Old French, equivalent to image + -ery

Explanation

Picture this: imagery is a noun to describe the way things or ideas seem in your mind or in art or literature. Imagery comes from image and originally referred to physical things like statues. Now it is more often used of an artist's or writer's depictions ("Shakespeare's imagery shows a wide knowledge of the world") or of the pictures of the world in someone's mind. Think of imagery as being the stockpile of your imagination. If the imagery in your dreams is a little scary, it might be time to stop eating those spicy meatball sandwiches right before bedtime.

Example Sentences

Among countries that carry artwork in their passports, nearly all feature either historical imagery or nature.

From Barron's • Apr. 28, 2026

More recently, it ran afoul of Pokémon’s legions by cribbing that franchise’s signature font and imagery.

From Salon • Apr. 26, 2026

“The U.S. has an indefinite holdback on commercial imagery over Iran, but the Chinese companies don’t have the same restrictions,” said Bill Greer, co-founder of Common Space, a nonprofit satellite service.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 23, 2026

Satellite imagery later obtained independently by both BBC Verify and the family showed the house they had built had been flattened and several of their olive trees destroyed.

From BBC • Apr. 23, 2026

Those of us in the civil rights community are not immune to the racial stereotypes that pervade media imagery and political rhetoric; nor do we operate outside of the political context.

From "The New Jim Crow" by Michelle Alexander

Related Words

• symbolism