imagination

[ ih-maj-uh-ney-shuhn ]

/ ɪˌmædʒ əˈneɪ ʃən /

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See synonyms for imagination on Thesaurus.com

noun

the faculty of imagining, or of forming mental images or concepts of what is not actually present to the senses.

the action or process of forming such images or concepts.

the faculty of producing ideal creations consistent with reality, as in literature, as distinct from the power of creating illustrative or decorative imagery. Compare fancy (def. 9).

the product of imagining a conception or mental creation, often a baseless or fanciful one.

ability to face and resolve difficulties; resourcefulness: a job that requires imagination.

Psychology. the power of reproducing images stored in the memory under the suggestion of associated images (reproductive imagination ) or of recombining former experiences in the creation of new images directed at a specific goal or aiding in the solution of problems (creative imagination ).

(in Kantian epistemology) synthesis of data from the sensory manifold into objects by means of the categories.

Archaic. a plan, scheme, or plot.

OTHER WORDS FOR imagination

5 ingenuity, enterprise, thought.

See synonyms for imagination on Thesaurus.com

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Origin of imagination

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English, Middle French, from Latin imāginātiōn- (stem of imāginātiō ) “mental image, fancy,” equivalent to imāgināt(us), past participle of the verb imāginārī imagine (imāgin-, stem of imāgō image + -ātus -ate¹) + -iōn- -ion

synonym study for imagination

3. See fancy.

OTHER WORDS FROM imagination

i·mag·i·na·tion·al, adjectivenon·im·ag·i·na·tion·al, adjective

Words nearby imagination

imaginary axis, imaginary number, imaginary part, imaginary runner, imaginary unit, imagination, imaginative, imagine, imagineer, imagineering, imaging

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

How to use imagination in a sentence

It takes us as finite beings and gives us almost infinite capacity to create new worlds of imagination.
Talking Is Throwing Fictional Worlds at One Another - Issue 89: The Dark Side|Kevin Berger|September 9, 2020|Nautilus
The process of decolonizing one’s imagination is the first step to envisioning a future where pleasures are more evenly distributed than was the case in our past.
Solarpunk Is Growing a Gorgeous New World in the Cracks of the Old One|Carin Ism|September 6, 2020|Singularity Hub
Now, with a little imagination, there are days where I can embrace it as a New Age-y sweat-based regimen among the skittering rodents.
The Sublime Agony of Hot-Weather Running|Martin Fritz Huber|August 27, 2020|Outside Online
People, he says, are too limited by their own experience and imaginations.
Can an A.I. hedge fund beat the market?|Jeremy Kahn|August 25, 2020|Fortune

They have little imagination about how to engage in social change, and even less imagination about the alternative world they would build if they could.
Generation Z is ‘traumatized’ by climate change—and they’re the key to fighting it|matthewheimer|August 19, 2020|Fortune
Does each character have one in real life that inspired it, or are they from your imagination?
The Zany Shades of Nick Kroll|Abby Haglage|December 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
She found instead a show of imagination, artistry, and above all, really happy people—and she quickly fell in love.
A Backstage Love Affair With Cirque du Soleil|Allison McNearney|December 1, 2014|DAILY BEAST
This little nook is the perfect spot for some quiet reading time or to let your imagination run wild.
The Daily Beast’s 2014 Holiday Gift Guide: For the Blue Ivy in Your Life|Allison McNearney|November 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
So after that initial inspiration, my imagination created the rest.
Amanda Knox: A Mother’s Obsession|Nina Darnton|November 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Today, Turkey in the German imagination has mostly to do with immigration, assimilation, and EU membership.
The 20th-Century Dictator Most Idolized by Hitler|William O’Connor|November 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Distance, the uncertain light, and imagination, magnified it to a high wall; high as the wall of China.
The Giant of the North|R.M. Ballantyne
I could have sworn I heard a cry, and one of my men spoke in a tone that assured me my imagination had not been playing a trick.
Raw Gold|Bertrand W. Sinclair
It was when the face and figure of a great tragedian began to haunt her imagination and stir her senses.
The Awakening and Selected Short Stories|Kate Chopin
How much of the imagination, how much of the intellect, evaporates and is lost while we seek to embody it in words!
Pearls of Thought|Maturin M. Ballou
When she heard it there came before her imagination the figure of a man standing beside a desolate rock on the seashore.
The Awakening and Selected Short Stories|Kate Chopin

British Dictionary definitions for imagination

imagination

/ (ɪˌmædʒɪˈneɪʃən) /

noun

the faculty or action of producing ideas, esp mental images of what is not present or has not been experienced

mental creative ability

the ability to deal resourcefully with unexpected or unusual problems, circumstances, etc

(in romantic literary criticism, esp that of S. T. Coleridge) a creative act of perception that joins passive and active elements in thinking and imposes unity on the poetic materialCompare fancy (def. 9)

Derived forms of imagination

imaginational, adjective

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 imagination

imagination

see figment of one's imagination.

imagination

OTHER WORDS FOR imagination

Origin of imagination

synonym study for imagination

OTHER WORDS FROM imagination

Words nearby imagination

Words related to imagination

How to use imagination in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for imagination

Derived forms of imagination

Other Idioms and Phrases with imagination