as in dreams
a conception or image created by the imagination and having no objective reality
hoped that one day world peace would be a reality and not just a daydream
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Recent Examples of daydreams
Alison Herman, Variety, 5 Mar. 2026
Below, some of the finest, high-quality ruffled bedding around the web for creating the frothy bedscape of your daydreams.
—Yelena Moroz Alpert, Architectural Digest, 28 Feb. 2026
Rather than stressing over social niceties, sitting in ornate carriages and snacking on cream cakes, Sophie daydreams while scrubbing floors and delivering tea.
—Madeline Hirsch, InStyle, 26 Feb. 2026
Shortly after, the book began to take shape, with new elements often arriving in vivid daydreams and eerie nightmares.
—Charlie Vargas, Oc Register, 30 Jan. 2026
And like the iconic Orient-Express (whose original route has been revived by Belmond's Venice Simplon-Orient-Express), the Champagne flutes, suited servers, and glossy design of this locomotive hold a seductive potential for daydreams and drama.
—Arati Menon, Condé Nast Traveler, 28 Jan. 2026
Bob Weir, the singer, songwriter, guitarist, and co-founder of the Grateful Dead, whose songs about sunshine daydreams and truckin’ helped turn the jam band into a 60-year musical empire, has died at age 78.
—Richard Gehr, Rolling Stone, 10 Jan. 2026
Alas, my daydreams about adapting an essay from my collection into a limited series TV show turned out to be just that.
—Literary Hub, 11 Dec. 2025
What about those perfect days and the daydreams that had sustained us?
—Michael Paterniti, Travel + Leisure, 14 Nov. 2025
Noun
More than masturbatory daydreams, Vladimir inspires our heroine to write with abandon, ignoring professional and personal obligations in service to her muse.
—Alison Herman, Variety, 5 Mar. 2026
Below, some of the finest, high-quality ruffled bedding around the web for creating the frothy bedscape of your daydreams.
—Yelena Moroz Alpert, Architectural Digest, 28 Feb. 2026
Rather than stressing over social niceties, sitting in ornate carriages and snacking on cream cakes, Sophie daydreams while scrubbing floors and delivering tea.
—Madeline Hirsch, InStyle, 26 Feb. 2026
Shortly after, the book began to take shape, with new elements often arriving in vivid daydreams and eerie nightmares.
—Charlie Vargas, Oc Register, 30 Jan. 2026
And like the iconic Orient-Express (whose original route has been revived by Belmond's Venice Simplon-Orient-Express), the Champagne flutes, suited servers, and glossy design of this locomotive hold a seductive potential for daydreams and drama.
—Arati Menon, Condé Nast Traveler, 28 Jan. 2026
Bob Weir, the singer, songwriter, guitarist, and co-founder of the Grateful Dead, whose songs about sunshine daydreams and truckin’ helped turn the jam band into a 60-year musical empire, has died at age 78.
—Richard Gehr, Rolling Stone, 10 Jan. 2026
Alas, my daydreams about adapting an essay from my collection into a limited series TV show turned out to be just that.
—Literary Hub, 11 Dec. 2025
What about those perfect days and the daydreams that had sustained us?
—Michael Paterniti, Travel + Leisure, 14 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for daydreams
Noun
-
Both have the talent to back up their dreams.—
Amy Nicholson,
Los Angeles Times,
10 Mar. 2026
-
Strong foundations can carry big dreams without unnecessary strain.—
Tarot.com,
The Orlando Sentinel,
9 Mar. 2026
Noun
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From that premise, Gyllenhaal lighted on 1930s movie musicals as some of the glossiest and most charming fantasies that Hollywood has ever put out, but also as some of the most consciously artificial.—
Sarah Shachat,
IndieWire,
11 Mar. 2026
-
In fact, his manuscript is also about his fantasies—in this case, fantasies about a young man who has a meaningful, intellectual, tender affair with his older mentor.—
Meg Walters,
Glamour,
9 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
But there was more blank space to fill in on Issei’s end, with Season 2 swapping out fantasy sequences in Camille’s mind palace for Issei’s visions of black-and-white moonscapes to that effect.—
Alison Herman,
Variety,
11 Mar. 2026
-
Disturbing visions and a shocking disappearance forces him to confront dark corners of his past.—
Alison Foreman,
IndieWire,
11 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Dartmouth will never be affected by the fundamental transformation of America that Campbell fantasizes will soon be devastating Winthrop, Holden and the rest of the towns.—
Howie Carr,
Boston Herald,
1 Feb. 2026
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Anyone who fantasizes about the new and improved version of themselves that awaits on the other side of the ball drop can relate to the special blend of optimism and self-criticism that the New Year often holds.—
Lauren Mechling,
Vogue,
27 Dec. 2025
Noun
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Only hours into the conflict, an errant strike on the Shajareh Tayyebeh girls’ school in southern Iran served as a gut-wrenching reminder of the cost of such illusions, and a testament to the grim truth that those who pay most dearly for the fog of war are almost always the innocent.—
Karim Sadjadpour,
The Atlantic,
4 Mar. 2026
-
Miuccia Prada, herself a billionaire, has no illusions that the runway is a space for political grandstanding.—
Rachel Tashjian,
CNN Money,
3 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Jackson fancies himself an American Sadat, performing the most sensitive, high-profile diplomatic missions for the president but without the accountability of appointive office.—
Gail Sheehy,
Vanity Fair,
20 Feb. 2026
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Sentenced to multiple life sentences for multiple murders, the low-level Camorra member fancies himself as someone well above his station.—
Ben Travers,
IndieWire,
20 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The Conversation imagines the war in Iran unfolding in a world powered mostly by wind, solar and batteries rather than oil and gas.—
Tim McDonnell,
semafor.com,
5 Mar. 2026
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Reiter imagines the ultralight, streamlined Orca transporter serving roles as diverse as individual customers.—
C.C. Weiss
March 05,
New Atlas,
5 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Thinking about the college football scouting process, images conjure up of wily old coaches traveling across the country to get cozy with potential recruits, eating the family’s best spread for dinner while trying to sell their program.—
Idaho Statesman,
Idaho Statesman,
5 Feb. 2026
-
Galison, who is also a physicist, works on the Event Horizon Telescope, which images black holes.—
IEEE Spectrum,
IEEE Spectrum,
3 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Daydreams.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/daydreams. Accessed 13 Mar. 2026.
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