Main Entry: mi·rage

Pronunciation: \mə-ˈräzh\

Function: noun

Etymology: French, from mirer to look at, from Latin mirari

Date: 1803

1 : an optical effect that is sometimes seen at sea, in the desert, or over a hot pavement, that may have the appearance of a pool of water or a mirror in which distant objects are seen inverted, and that is caused by the bending or reflection of rays of light by a layer of heated air of varying density
2 : something illusory and unattainable like a mirage

synonyms see delusion