dreamer

1 of 2

noun (1)

dream·​er ˈdrē-mər How to pronounce dreamer (audio)
1
: one that dreams
2
a
: one who lives in a world of fancy and imagination
b
: one who has ideas or conceives projects regarded as impractical : visionary

Dreamer

2 of 2

noun (2)

Dream·​er ˈdrē-mər How to pronounce Dreamer (audio)
variants or less commonly dreamer or DREAMer
plural Dreamers also dreamers or DREAMers
: a person living in the United States without legal status who arrived as the child of someone who did not have the documentation required for legal entry or residence
In U.S. medical schools, there are currently 99 Dreamers enrolled, according to the Association of American Medical Colleges.Todd Ackerman
The program—Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals—protects about 700,000 people, known as dreamers, who were brought to the U.S. illegally as children or came with families that overstayed visas.Mark Sherman
Bipartisan support exists for some form of legal protection for DREAMers, but fights over who should be protected, to what level and what should be included in the overall deal has forced Congress to a standstill.Eliza Collins

Examples of dreamer in a Sentence

Noun (1) I am a realist, but my sister is a dreamer. Some dreamers talk in their sleep to the people in their dreams.
Recent Examples on the Web
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Noun
With a main home and a guest cottage offering up a total of four bedrooms and four baths in nearly 3,150 square feet, the secluded residence has plenty of room for any like-minded dreamer to eat, pray, love, and more while enjoying some particularly stunning ocean and mountain views. Wendy Bowman, Robb Report, 22 May 2025 The budget dreamers in one-party California are the latest to be shocked — shocked! Editorial, Boston Herald, 22 May 2025 Ellis, a venturesome dreamer with a promising academic future, drowns during the summer before college. Marc Weingarten, Los Angeles Times, 13 May 2025 Is that what a real myth is, a dream that runs along beneath the dreamers, like a river? John Jeremiah Sullivan, Harpers Magazine, 29 Apr. 2025 See All Example Sentences for dreamer

Word History

Etymology

Noun (2)

DREAM Act (Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act, introduced in the U.S. Senate as S.1291 in 2001 but not passed) + -er entry 2, with play on dreamer

First Known Use

Noun (1)

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (2)

2004, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of dreamer was in the 14th century

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Cite this Entry

“Dreamer.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dreamer. Accessed 28 May. 2025.

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