daydream
Americannoun
verb (used without object)
noun
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a pleasant dreamlike fantasy indulged in while awake; idle reverie
-
a pleasant scheme or wish that is unlikely to be fulfilled; pipe dream
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
daydreamsimple
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daydreamssimple
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have daydreamedperfect
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has daydreamedperfect
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am daydreamingprogressive
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are daydreamingprogressive
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is daydreamingprogressive
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have been daydreamingperfect progressive
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has been daydreamingperfect progressive
Past
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daydreamedsimple
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had daydreamedperfect
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was daydreamingprogressive
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were daydreamingprogressive
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had been daydreamingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of daydream
Explanation
A daydream is a fantasy you have while you're awake. Daydreams are pleasant, and they can be so absorbing that they distract you from what's going on around you. You might have a daydream about moving to a big city, or about how you'd spend your millions if you won the lottery. To do this — dream, muse, or fantasize — is also to daydream. Your math teacher might scold you, saying, "You can't daydream in the middle of the calculus final!" The word dates from the 17th century.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
In many cases, you and I and complete strangers daydream alike to the same songs.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 15, 2026
The success of the bearded, ass-kicking Ranger marked a stunning reversal of fortune for Norris, who grew up a shy, unathletic child, who "used to daydream about being strong...to beat up the bullies".
From Barron's ● Mar. 20, 2026
This kind of thinking is everywhere: Blue Origin is sending Katy Perry way high up into the sky, a stunt to help sell a sci-fi daydream of one day taking a bus to Moon.
From Slate ● Apr. 10, 2025
It also brings back certain lightness in pop music that's much needed for escape and fall into the daydream of Carpenter's blissful, color-filled world.
From Salon ● Dec. 28, 2024
Sometimes I have it during the day, but then it’s a daydream.
From "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time" by Mark Haddon
What emerges in our musical daydreams might be something to hold on to.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 15, 2026
"The office cubicle has trapped me again," he says as he daydreams of a holiday on the continent.
From BBC ● Mar. 6, 2026
“I’ve had all sorts of daydreams about every pitching thing possible as a kid — relieving, closing out a game, starting in the World Series,” he said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 1, 2025
Mendoza, a business grad student who daydreams about making commercial real estate deals, flew in from Cal.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2025
An old, familiar question broke in on his daydreams.
From "The Golden Goblet" by Eloise Jarvis McGraw
"I daydreamed a story," Hailey remembered on Desert Island Discs in 1986.
From BBC ● Apr. 3, 2026
For years, April had daydreamed about seeing Hunter again, imagining that he would still be the little boy she remembered.
From Slate ● Oct. 15, 2024
But since his death on Apr. 1, their mother, Inshirah — who once daydreamed of seeing Saifeddin get married — has been unable to accept that he is gone.
From New York Times ● Apr. 10, 2024
Vincent‘s purchase came after years of perusing yard sales and thrift stores with her mother. She loves PBS’ “Antiques Roadshow” and has daydreamed many times of this kind of lottery ticket-level transaction.
From Washington Times ● Dec. 21, 2023
I rolled and rolled, and daydreamed about finding Marcus’s witness and being able to tell Mom that she was wrong.
From "From the Desk of Zoe Washington" by Janae Marks
You are standing in line alongside everyone else, daydreaming about whatever, when, out of the corner of your eye, you see a few men sprinting down the street in the opposite direction.
From Slate ● Jun. 16, 2026
I don’t remember the impact of their split, but later, my mother told me my first-grade teacher said I had started daydreaming after being very attentive.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 3, 2026
Harold’s people, like me, well they could be found daydreaming in cemeteries or sipping coffee on the stoops of abandoned houses.
From Salon ● Feb. 17, 2026
On Monday, that daydreaming lad from Lancashire raced at his fifth and final Olympics, his retirement imminent at the age of 39 after a career that has cemented his place as Britain's greatest Alpine skier.
From BBC ● Feb. 16, 2026
I spend way too much time daydreaming, for starters.
From "What If It's Us" by Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
