vision

American  

[vizh-uhn] / ˈvɪʒ ən /

noun

1. the act or power of sensing with the eyes; sight.

2. the act or power of anticipating that which will or may come to be.

   prophetic vision;

   the vision of an entrepreneur.

   Synonyms:

   discernment, perception

3. an experience in which a personage, thing, or event appears vividly or credibly to the mind, although not actually present, often under the influence of a divine or other agency.

   a heavenly messenger appearing in a vision.

4. something seen or otherwise perceived during such an experience.

   The vision revealed its message.

   Synonyms:

   chimera, phantasm, apparition

5. a vivid, imaginative conception or anticipation.

   visions of wealth and glory.

6. something seen; an object of sight.

7. a scene, person, etc., of extraordinary beauty.

   The sky was a vision of red and pink.

8. computer vision.

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verb (used with object)

1. to envision, or picture mentally.

   She tried to vision herself in a past century.

vision British  

/ ˈvɪʒən /

noun

1. the act, faculty, or manner of perceiving with the eye; sight

2. 1. the image on a television screen

   2. ( as modifier )

      vision control

3. the ability or an instance of great perception, esp of future developments

   a man of vision

4. a mystical or religious experience of seeing some supernatural event, person, etc

   the vision of St John of the Cross

5. that which is seen, esp in such a mystical experience

6. (sometimes plural) a vivid mental image produced by the imagination

   he had visions of becoming famous

7. a person or thing of extraordinary beauty

8. the stated aims and objectives of a business or other organization

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verb

1. (tr) to see or show in or as if in a vision

Synonym Usage

See dream.

Other Word Forms

• visionless
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of vision

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English, from Latin vīsiōn-, stem of vīsiō “sight,” literally “a seeing,” equivalent to vīs(us) “seen,” past participle of vidēre “to see” + -iō -ion

Explanation

If you are getting your eyes checked, a doctor is checking on your vision — or your ability to see. But if you have visions of unicorns romping over rainbows, that's a whole other issue that the eye doctor can't address. The noun vision describes how well you can see, but it can also refer to things you may see, but that aren't physically there. Sometimes people claim to have religious visions of God, angels, the Virgin Mary, and so on. The word can also be used to describe something that is lovely: "The bride was a vision in white."

Example Sentences

Then one day the mapmaker stumbles on a sacred grove that delivers him a vision and a mission.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 29, 2026

It’s a vision wide enough to include monster trucks, lowriders, underground comedy, Miami street art, Texas barbecue and haggis tacos, dreamed up by Ferguson and executed by celebrity chef Marcus Samuelsson.

From Los Angeles Times • May 29, 2026

In March, Huang laid out a vision of data centers where Nvidia’s GPU servers are deployed side by side with new Groq servers, working together on what each does best.

From Barron's • May 29, 2026

But this success does not mean the end of the journey for Kroenke and his vision for the club, with the Gunners playing Paris-St Germain in the Champions League final on Saturday.

From BBC • May 28, 2026

Though it had been difficult, and despite long odds and months spent apart, Mamá and Daddy’s vision for our family was successful.

From "Reaching for the Moon" by Katherine Johnson

Related Words

• aspect
• conception
• dream
• fantasy
• foresight
• idea
• ideal
• imagination
• insight
• outlook
• perspective
• point of view
• understanding
• view