fantasy

noun

fan·ta·sy | \ˈfan-tə-sē,

-zē\

variants: or less commonly phantasy

plural fantasies

Definition of fantasy

(Entry 1 of 3)

1 obsolete : hallucination

2 : fancy especially : the free play of creative imagination

3 : a creation of the imaginative faculty whether expressed or merely conceived: such as

a : a fanciful design or invention a fantasy of delicate tracery

b : a chimerical or fantastic notion His plans are pure fantasy.

c : fantasia sense 1 the organ fantasy of Johannes Brahms

d : imaginative fiction featuring especially strange settings and grotesque characters spent the summer reading fantasy

— called also fantasy fiction

4 : caprice served to fulfill the king's fantasies

5 : the power or process of creating especially unrealistic or improbable mental images in response to psychological need an object of fantasy also : a mental image or a series of mental images (such as a daydream) so created sexual fantasies

6 often attributive : a coin usually not intended for circulation as currency and often issued by a dubious authority (such as a government-in-exile)

fantasy

verb

fantasied; fantasying

Definition of fantasy (Entry 2 of 3)

: fantasize

fantasy

adjective

Definition of fantasy (Entry 3 of 3)

: of, relating to, or being a game in which participants create and manage imaginary teams consisting of players from a particular sport and scoring is based on the statistical performances of the actual players fantasy football

Synonyms & Antonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about fantasy

Keep scrolling for more

Examples of fantasy in a Sentence

Noun

His plans are pure fantasy. He can hardly tell the difference between fantasy and reality. His plans are just fantasies. Her fantasy is to be a film star. His plans are the product of pure fantasy. I spent my summer reading fantasies.

Verb

she regularly fantasies sexual encounters that she knows will never happen

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

While some have written off the idea as fantasy, others have said technology is rapidly making the system feasible, though costs remain unclear based on location and land values, along with a huge debate on the cost of building the line. — Dug Begley, Houston Chronicle, "Hyperloop's first step bypasses Houston," 11 July 2018 Belief in the untutored wisdom of the masses is the stuff of socialist fantasies. — The Economist, "The Conservative Party has trashed the basic principles of conservatism," 12 July 2018 The retro clip has Musgraves living out her 9-to-5 fantasies at bland 1970s-looking office with some unsavory, kind of gross coworkers. — Alessandra Rincón, Billboard, "Kacey Musgraves Leaves it All on the Dancefloor in Sassy Disco Country 'High Horse' Video: Watch," 12 July 2018 Naked empowerment fantasies are exhilarating, a little shameful, and obviously implausible. — Noah Berlatsky, The Verge, "The best superhero stories admit that superheroes are ridiculous," 11 July 2018 Yesterday, on the last day of Paris Couture Week, Valentino staged a runway show reminding us all the power of dreamy, breathtaking couture gowns fit for a fashion fantasy. — Lauren Alexis Fisher, Harper's BAZAAR, "The Gowns At Valentino's Couture Show Will Take Your Breath Away," 5 July 2018 The models were working within my photographic themes, which are nudity, sexuality, gender, beauty, and fantasy. — Laura Regensdorf, Vogue, "Ryan McGinley's Latest Nude Series Is an Empowering Riff on Selfie Culture," 4 July 2018 As our opening week of fantasy football draft prep marches on, some of SI.com’s best NFL minds got together for a mock draft—12 teams went 12 rounds, drafting for a standard-scoring league. — Si.com Staff, SI.com, "Fantasy Football 2018 Mock Draft," 4 July 2018 In truth, the best hope for these fantasies would have been for Romney to bow out of running at the last minute leaving people free to dream of what Senator Romney might have been. — Matthew Yglesias, Vox, "3 winners and 2 losers from the primaries in South Carolina, New York, Utah, and Colorado," 27 June 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

Who can fantasy owners find to take Hoskins' place? — Usa Today Sports, USA TODAY, "Fantasy baseball chat with Brent Hershey: Thursday at noon ET," 30 May 2018 From fantasy hot commodity to fantasy goat in the span of a week, Henry did not see much time on the field, rushing just six times for 7 yards vs. the stout Texans defense. — Tony Holm, USA TODAY, "Fantasy sizzlers and fizzlers: Deshaun Watson does it all," 2 Oct. 2017

Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective

Of the group, Verdugo and Pederson probably offer the most fantasy appeal, since Hernandez is a .207/.264/.333 career hitter against right-handed pitching. — Brian Rudd, USA TODAY, "Injuries give young players opportunity," 9 May 2018 And if there’s anything fantasy baseball owners don’t like, it’s uncertainty. — Steve Gardner, USA TODAY, "Fantasy baseball: Spring training brings uncertainty for owners," 6 Mar. 2018 And that brings us to Kelce’s biggest fantasy nemesis: Alex Smith. — John Paulsen, SI.com, "After Rob Gronkowski, Should I Draft Travis Kelce or Jordan Reed in Fantasy Football?," 19 Aug. 2017 The rankings reflect overall fantasy value in a standard 12-team, point-per-reception (PPR) league. — Usa Today Sports, The Courier-Journal, "Fantasy football rankings: Top 200 for 2017," 31 July 2017 According to Mr. Adams, the agents questioned him about the nature of his addiction and how fantasy sports ads had affected him. — Walt Bogdanich, James Glanz And Jacqueline Williams, New York Times, "Fantasy Sites Are Dealt New Rebuff by Citigroup," 5 Feb. 2016

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

Keep scrolling for more

Learn More about fantasy

Dictionary Entries near fantasy

Phrases Related to fantasy

beyond one's wildest dreams/fantasies

flight of fancy/imagination/fantasy

live in a fantasy world

Statistics for fantasy

Last Updated

3 Oct 2018

Look-up Popularity

Time Traveler for fantasy

The first known use of fantasy was in the 14th century

See more words from the same century

Keep scrolling for more

More Definitions for fantasy

fantasy

noun

English Language Learners Definition of fantasy

: something that is produced by the imagination : an idea about doing something that is far removed from normal reality

: the act of imagining something

: a book, movie, etc., that tells a story about things that happen in an imaginary world

See the full definition for fantasy in the English Language Learners Dictionary

fantasy

noun

fan·ta·sy | \ˈfan-tə-sē, -zē\

plural fantasies

Kids Definition of fantasy

1 : imagination sense 1 The plan was a product of pure fantasy.

2 : something produced by the imagination His fantasy is to win a million dollars.

fantasy

noun

fan·ta·sy

variants: also phantasy \ˈfant-ə-sē,

-zē

plural fantasies

Medical Definition of fantasy

(Entry 1 of 2)

: the power or process of creating especially unrealistic or improbable mental images in response to psychological need an object of fantasy also : a mental image or a series of mental images (as a daydream) so created sexual fantasies of adolescence