Definition of ENVISAGES

Choose the Right Synonym for envisage

think, conceive, imagine, fancy, realize, envisage, envision mean to form an idea of. think implies the entrance of an idea into one's mind with or without deliberate consideration or reflection. I just thought of a good joke conceive suggests the forming and bringing forth and usually developing of an idea, plan, or design. conceived of a new marketing approach imagine stresses a visualization. imagine you're at the beach fancy suggests an imagining often unrestrained by reality but spurred by desires. fancied himself a super athlete realize stresses a grasping of the significance of what is conceived or imagined. realized the enormity of the task ahead envisage and envision imply a conceiving or imagining that is especially clear or detailed. envisaged a totally computerized operation envisioned a cure for the disease

Did You Know?

Envisage has been part of the English language since the 17th century. In the early 19th century, it was sometimes used with the now archaic sense of "to meet squarely" or "to confront." By 1837, the word had developed the sense "to have a mental picture of." In the 1920s, some usage commentators began deriding envisage for reasons not entirely clear, declaring it "undesirable." Today, time and usage have won out, and envisage is widely used and accepted, though it is slightly formal in tone. The same can be said of its near twin envision ("to picture to oneself"), which has been with us since the late 19th century and is interchangeable with envisage in many contexts.

Examples of envisage in a Sentence

I envisage a day when proper health care will be available to everyone. I'm trying to envisage you on a surfboard.

Recent Examples on the Web Recognising this, the agreement envisages a future in which, as well as hugely reducing the amount of CO2put into the atmosphere, nations also take a fair bit out. — The Economist, "Climate policy needs negative carbon-dioxide emissions," 5 Dec. 2019 In the next stage, envisaged to begin on May 11 for most of Spain, bars will reopen their terraces but will be limited to a third of their capacity. — NBC News, "Instead of gin, hand sanitizer," 1 May 2020 Israel’s defense doctrine, formulated by its first prime minister, David Ben-Gurion, was geared to the kind of long war that its Arab adversaries envisaged, in which Israel faced serious disadvantages. — Steven Simon, The New York Review of Books, "The Middle East: Trump Blunders In," 16 Jan. 2020 The draft plan envisages 15 major programmes and various activities that would be implemented over short-term (2020-2024), medium-term (2024-2027), and long-term (2027-2030). — Mayank Aggarwal, Quartz India, "After tigers and elephants, India now plans to protect its endangered birds," 9 Feb. 2020 The founding fathers of Indian independence from British rule in the 1940s, the likes of Mahatma Gandhi, envisaged a secular nation, building a constitution where Hindus and Muslims were equal under the law. — Sadiq Naqvi, ABC News, "An arrest, a suicide and fears of internment camps as India debates new citizenship law," 29 Feb. 2020 Greg Gordon, analyst at Evercore ISI, estimates that every $1 billion of debt replaced with equity at the existing shareholders’ backstop price cuts the value by $2 a share — and the current plan envisages $7 billion of holdco debt alone. — Liam Denning | Bloomberg, Washington Post, "Whatever PG&E Does, Markets Can’t Ignore Newsom’s Letter," 16 Dec. 2019 The plan illustrates the sheer size of the changes Ms Warren envisages (see chart 3). — The Economist, "Elizabeth Warren’s many plans would reshape American capitalism," 24 Oct. 2019 This curtain raiser for Saturday's final between South Africa and England is not how either would have envisaged taking their final bow. — Daniel Gallan, CNN, "All Blacks run rampant against Wales to end Rugby World Cup on a high," 1 Nov. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'envisage.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.