imago

American  

[ih-mey-goh, ih-mah-] / ɪˈmeɪ goʊ, ɪˈmɑ- /

noun

PLURAL

imagoes, imagines

1. Entomology.  an adult insect.

2. Psychoanalysis.  an idealized concept of a loved one, formed in childhood and retained unaltered in adult life.

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imago British  

/ ɪˈmeɪɡəʊ /

noun

1. an adult sexually mature insect produced after metamorphosis

2. psychoanal an idealized image of another person, usually a parent, acquired in childhood and carried in the unconscious in later life

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imago Scientific  

/ ĭ-mā′gō /

PLURAL

imagoes

1. An insect in its sexually mature adult stage after metamorphosis.

2. Compare larva nymph pupa

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Etymology

Origin of imago

1790–1800; < New Latin, Latin imāgō; image

Example Sentences

“Feel the connection between your hand that creates and your mind that imagines.”

From New York Times

At times, when someone takes Mejía’s seat at the dining room table, she imagines for a moment that it’s him.

From Los Angeles Times

Revolving around a scenic painter named Tod Hackett, it imagines the city ending in a conflagration, and its gimlet-eyed look at the industry’s hypocrisies and contradictions is both of its moment and ongoingly relevant.

From Los Angeles Times

Trump imagines that he is loved and supported by the American people.

From Salon

Mackintosh’s sensual depiction of shame and obsession imagines a world where desire and tragedy go hand in hand.

From Washington Post