Imagination - Definition, Meaning & Synonyms

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SKIP TO CONTENT imagination /ɪˈmædʒəˌneɪʃən/ /ɪmædʒɪˈnɛɪʃən/ IPA guide

Other forms: imaginations

Imagination refers to the process of forming images or concepts in the mind, often images of things that are not really there. That shark in your bathtub must have been in your imagination — or was it?

Often shunned for living in a dream world, imagination is behind unicorns, Big Foot, and excessive daydreaming. But it’s humans’ ability to picture what is not there, and to be resourceful and creative, that is behind many of our achievements. Maybe that’s why Albert Einstein said “Imagination is more important than knowledge.” After all, without a little imagination, we wouldn’t have the pyramids, the space shuttles, or the Star Wars trilogy.

Definitions of imagination

noun the ability to form mental images of things or events “he could still hear her in his imagination” synonyms: imagery, imaging, mental imagery see moresee less types: show 10 types... hide 10 types... mind's eye the imaging of remembered or invented scenes vision a vivid mental image envisioning, picturing visual imagery dream, dreaming a series of mental images and emotions occurring during sleep chimaera, chimera a grotesque product of the imagination evocation imaginative re-creation make-believe, pretence, pretense imaginative intellectual play nightmare a terrifying or deeply upsetting dream prevision a prophetic vision (as in a dream) retrovision a vision of events in the distant past type of: representational process any basic cognitive process in which some entity comes to stand for or represent something else
noun the formation of a mental image of something that is not perceived as real and is not present to the senses “popular imagination created a world of demons” “imagination reveals what the world could be” synonyms: imaginativeness, vision see moresee less types: show 48 types... hide 48 types... fictitious place, imaginary place, mythical place a place that exists only in imagination; a place said to exist in fictional or religious writings fancy a kind of imagination that was held by Coleridge to be more casual and superficial than true imagination fantasy, phantasy imagination unrestricted by reality dream, dreaming imaginative thoughts indulged in while awake imaginary being, imaginary creature a creature of the imagination; a person that exists only in legends or myths or fiction afterworld the place where you are after you die Annwfn, Annwn (Welsh mythology) the other world; land of fairies Asgard (Norse mythology) the heavenly dwelling of the Norse gods (the Aesir) and slain war heroes Atlantis according to legend, an island in the Atlantic Ocean that Plato said was swallowed by an earthquake Brobdingnag a land imagined by Jonathan Swift where everything was enormous cloud-cuckoo-land an imaginary place where you say people are when they seem optimistically out of touch with reality Cockaigne (Middle Ages) an imaginary land of luxury and idleness El Dorado, eldorado an imaginary place of great wealth and opportunity; sought in South America by 16th-century explorers faerie, faery, fairyland the enchanted realm of fairies Heaven the abode of God and the angels Elysium a place or condition of ideal happiness Hades, Hell, Scheol, infernal region, netherworld, underworld (religion) the world of the dead Hell, Inferno, infernal region, nether region, perdition, pit (Christianity) the abode of Satan and the forces of evil; where sinners suffer eternal punishment Houyhnhnms a land imagined by Jonathan Swift where intelligent horses ruled the Yahoos Laputa a land imagined by Jonathan Swift where impractical projects were pursued and practical projects neglected Lilliput a land imagined by Jonathan Swift that was inhabited by tiny people limbo (theology) in Roman Catholicism, the place of unbaptized but innocent or righteous souls (such as infants and virtuous individuals) limbo an imaginary place for lost or neglected things Midgard (Norse mythology) the abode of humans in Norse mythology dreamland, dreamworld, never-never land a pleasing country existing only in dreams or imagination purgatory (theology) in Roman Catholic theology the place where those who have died in a state of grace undergo limited torment to expiate their sins Ruritania an imaginary kingdom in central Europe; often used as a scene for intrigue and romance spirit world any imaginary place where spiritual beings (demons or fairies or angels or the like) abide Sion, Utopia, Zion an imaginary place considered to be perfect or ideal wonderland an imaginary realm of marvels or wonders dream, pipe dream a fantastic but vain hope (from fantasies induced by the opium pipe) fantasy life, phantasy life an imaginary life lived in a fantasy world fairyland, fantasy world, phantasy world something existing solely in the imagination (but often mistaken for reality) air castle, castle in Spain, castle in the air, daydream, daydreaming, oneirism, reverie, revery absentminded dreaming while awake woolgathering an idle indulgence in fantasy hypothetical creature a creature that has not been observed but is hypothesized to exist mythical being an imaginary being of myth or fable giant an imaginary figure of superhuman size and strength; appears in folklore and fairy tales hobbit an imaginary being similar to a person but smaller and with hairy feet; invented by J.R.R. Tolkien mermaid half woman and half fish; lives in the sea merman half man and half fish; lives in the sea Cadmus (Greek mythology) the brother of Europa and traditional founder of Thebes in Boeotia monster an imaginary creature usually having various human and animal parts witch a being (usually female) imagined to have special powers derived from the devil character, fictional character, fictitious character an imaginary person represented in a work of fiction (play or film or story) psychopomp a conductor of souls to the afterworld sylph an elemental being believed to inhabit the air unicorn an imaginary creature represented as a white horse with a long horn growing from its forehead type of: creative thinking, creativeness, creativity the ability to create
noun the ability to deal resourcefully with unusual problems synonyms: resource, resourcefulness see moresee less types: armory, armoury, inventory a collection of resources type of: cleverness, ingeniousness, ingenuity, inventiveness the power of creative imagination

Pronunciation US /ɪˈmædʒəˌneɪʃən/ UK /ɪmædʒɪˈnɛɪʃən/ Cite this entry Style: MLA

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Copy citation DISCLAIMER: These example sentences appear in various news sources and books to reflect the usage of the word ‘imagination'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Vocabulary.com or its editors. Send us feedback Word Family

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