dream

[ dreem ]

/ drim /

Save This Word!

See synonyms for: dream / dreaming / dreams / dreamt on Thesaurus.com

noun

a succession of images, thoughts, or emotions passing through the mind during sleep.

the sleeping state in which this occurs.

an object seen in a dream.

an involuntary vision occurring to a person when awake.

a vision voluntarily indulged in while awake; daydream; reverie.

an aspiration; goal; aim: A trip to Europe is his dream.

a wild or vain fancy.

something of an unreal beauty, charm, or excellence.

verb (used without object), dreamed or dreamt, dream·ing.

to have a dream.

to indulge in daydreams or reveries: He dreamed about vacation plans when he should have been working.

to think or conceive of something in a very remote way (usually followed by of): I wouldn't dream of asking them.

verb (used with object), dreamed or dreamt, dream·ing.

to see or imagine in sleep or in a vision.

to imagine as if in a dream; fancy; suppose.

to pass or spend (time) in dreaming (often followed by away): to dream away the afternoon.

adjective

most desirable; ideal: a dream vacation.

Verb Phrases

dream up, to form in the imagination; devise: They dreamed up the most impossible plan.

QUIZ

CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?

There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?

Question 1 of 7

Which sentence is correct?

His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of dream

First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English dreem, Old English drēam “joy, mirth, gladness,” cognate with Old Saxon drōm “mirth, dream,” Old Norse draumr, Old High German troum “dream”

synonym study for dream

1. Dream, nightmare, and vision refer to the kinds of mental images that form during sleep. Dream is the general term for any such succession of images. A nightmare is a dream that brings fear or anxiety: frightened by a nightmare. Vision refers to a series of images of unusual vividness, clarity, order, and significance, sometimes seen in a dream.

OTHER WORDS FROM dream

dreamful, adjectivedream·ful·ly, adverbdream·ful·ness, noundream·ing·ly, adverb

dreamlike, adjectivere·dream, verb, re·dreamed or re·dreamt, re·dream·ing.un·dreamed, adjectiveun·dream·ing, adjectiveun·dream·like, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use dream in a sentence

Once upon a time, a girl named Onika Maraj dreamed of being an actress.
Nicki Minaj: High School Actress|Alex Chancey, The Daily Beast Video|December 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Bin Laden killed the boy, not us, and I slept and I dreamed.
I Shot Bin Laden|Elliot Ackerman|November 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Big Kahuna Burger is a fictional chain of Hawaiian-themed fast food burger joints out in Los Angeles dreamed up by Tarantino.
The Secrets of ‘Pulp Fiction’: 20 Things You Didn’t Know About the Movie on Its 20th Anniversary|Marlow Stern|October 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He said he dreamed of starting a school after selling his computer business in Houston in 1989.
At This Creepy Libertarian Charter School, Kids Must Swear ‘to Be Obedient to Those in Authority’|ProPublica|October 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Cuomo added that when Republicans talked about bringing “back the old values, I never dreamed they meant Watergate.”
Andrew Cuomo’s Do-Gooders Done Wrong|Lloyd Green|July 28, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Upon this he went to bed again, fell asleep, and dreamed a fourth time as before.
The Life and Most Surprising Adventures of Robinson Crusoe, of York, Mariner (1801)|Daniel Defoe
At last she had fallen asleep and dreamed ecstatic dreams about diamond necklaces and thousand franc notes.
Rosemary in Search of a Father|C. N. Williamson
The earnest youth grinding at the academic mill has dreamed it in the pauses of his studious labor.
The Unsolved Riddle of Social Justice|Stephen Leacock
She never dreamed that she herself was a pawn in the game that was intended to bring Nana Sahib to Delhi.
The Red Year|Louis Tracy
Many Balzacians have dreamed of compiling such a civil record.
Repertory Of The Comedie Humaine, Complete, A -- Z|Anatole Cerfberr and Jules Franois Christophe

British Dictionary definitions for dream

dream

/ (driːm) /

noun

mental activity, usually in the form of an imagined series of events, occurring during certain phases of sleep
(as modifier)a dream sequence
(in combination)dreamland Related adjective: oneiric

a sequence of imaginative thoughts indulged in while awake; daydream; fantasy
(as modifier)a dream world

a person or thing seen or occurring in a dream

a cherished hope; ambition; aspiration

a vain hope

a person or thing that is as pleasant, or seemingly unreal, as a dream

go like a dream to move, develop, or work very well

verb dreams, dreaming, dreamed or dreamt (drɛmt)

(may take a clause as object) to undergo or experience (a dream or dreams)

(intr) to indulge in daydreams

(intr) to suffer delusions; be unrealisticyou're dreaming if you think you can win

(when intr, foll by of or about) to have an image (of) or fantasy (about) in or as if in a dream

(intr foll by of) to consider the possibility (of)I wouldn't dream of troubling you

adjective

too good to be true; idealdream kitchen

Derived forms of dream

dreamful, adjectivedreamfully, adverbdreaming, noun, adjectivedreamingly, adverb

dreamless, adjectivedreamlessly, adverbdreamlessness, noundreamlike, adjective

Word Origin for dream

Old English drēam song; related to Old High German troum, Old Norse draumr, Greek thrulos noise

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with dream

dream

In addition to the idioms beginning with dream

dream come true, a
dream up

also see:

pipe dream
sweet dreams
wouldn't dream of

dream

Origin of dream

synonym study for dream

OTHER WORDS FROM dream

Words related to dream

How to use dream in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for dream

Derived forms of dream

Word Origin for dream

Other Idioms and Phrases with dream