fever dream

[fee-ver dreem]

noun

1. a particularly distressing, scary, or bizarre dream that a person may have when experiencing a fever.

   Bedridden with pneumonia, he had a fever dream in which bony old cats were climbing the walls of his room.

2. a situation, circumstance, or experience, typically unfavorable, that is odd enough to be likened more to a dream than to reality.

   So far, college has felt like a fever dream—ever since I arrived I’ve just felt so out of place.

Word History and Origins

Origin of fever dream¹

First recorded in 1795–1805

Example Sentences

“It was a little kind of fever dream,” she says.

From Los Angeles Times

I listened to Pritzker’s recent appearances on comedian Hasan Minhaj’s interview show and the American Fever Dream podcast to explore the question.

From Slate

On American Fever Dream—a left-leaning program “dedicated to curing the collective malaise brought on by our chaotic political environment”—his response to a question about how Democrats can do a better job communicating with voters was indicative.

From Slate

I’ve seen this question answered better in the last month by a state Senate candidate in Iowa—and by Fever Dream host Sami Sage, who, after describing the paranoid and defensive posture that the right wing encourages in American men, suggested that Democrats should try instead to “trigger their protective instinct towards things that actually need protecting.”

From Slate

It’s tempting to write off NatCon, and Schmitt’s speech in particular, as an example of a bunch of right-wing kooks indulging their little fever dream of creating a white Christian autocracy.

From Salon