as in theory
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1
as in envisioning
to form a mental picture of
she was determined to have the wedding that she had always imagined
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in thinking
to have as an opinion
I imagine that's true, but you still have to prove it
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in guessing
to form an opinion from little or no evidence
I imagine things will change rapidly once we begin
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Recent Examples of imagining
Daysia Tolentino, Entertainment Weekly, 31 Dec. 2025
If the poem were merely a wish that the world is like this, a pretty imagining, then to hell with it.
—Christian Wiman, Harpers Magazine, 30 Dec. 2025
Guy Ritchie‘s re-imagining of Sherlock Holmes has its first teaser trailer.
—James Hibberd, HollywoodReporter, 18 Dec. 2025
Young Sherlock follows the origin story of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s beloved detective in a re-imagining of the iconic character’s early days.
—Denise Petski, Deadline, 9 Dec. 2025
Even so, his imagining of America has become one of the country’s most iconic symphonic statements.
—Sheila Regan, Twin Cities, 5 Dec. 2025
This is a frankly majestic imagining of 16th-century feudal Japan filled with paddy fields, winding valleys, windswept plains, and teeming towns all knitted together into a virtual tapestry of striking geographic verisimilitude.
—Lewis Gordon, Vulture, 3 Dec. 2025
Jordan, who made his directorial debut in 2023 with Creed III, suggested a new imagining of The Thomas Crown Affair to Amazon MGM Studios.
—Carly Tagen-Dye, PEOPLE, 29 Nov. 2025
The songs arise from the all time he’s spent alone, reading Flannery O’Connor and catching Terence Malick’s Badlands (another imagining of the Starkweather-Fugate saga) on TV.
—Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 24 Oct. 2025
semafor.com, 25 Feb. 2026
So, there’s a way in which land offers, figuratively and literally, fertile space for imagining a way of life, a way of being, that can be sustainable, that can be flourishing.
—Lisa Deaderick, San Diego Union-Tribune, 21 Feb. 2026
A lot of it is imagining what would happen behind closed doors given their circumstances.
—Lexi Carson, HollywoodReporter, 19 Feb. 2026
Fleming ends the piece by imagining a day when all the boomers show up on the White House lawn ominously holding their indecipherable Bitmoji over their heads.
—John Roy, Vulture, 19 Feb. 2026
But importantly, the model is not actually imagining anything or engaging in any deliberation, just reproducing patterns in how people talk or write about these counterfactuals.
—Walter Quattrociocchi, Scientific American, 18 Feb. 2026
There’s something about studying real-life situations that have happened and then creating and imagining into this fictional kind of characterization of things.
—Leigh Nordstrom, Footwear News, 17 Feb. 2026
There simply isn't a better composer for imagining the sound of a new world.
—Alex Galbraith, Entertainment Weekly, 15 Feb. 2026
Writing clues invites out-of-the-box thinking, like imagining how a book’s movie trailer would look.
—Jess Decourcy Hinds
february 13, Literary Hub, 13 Feb. 2026
Noun
For contestants on Jeopardy's Ultimate Tournament of Champions in 2005, no imagining was needed.
—Daysia Tolentino, Entertainment Weekly, 31 Dec. 2025
If the poem were merely a wish that the world is like this, a pretty imagining, then to hell with it.
—Christian Wiman, Harpers Magazine, 30 Dec. 2025
Guy Ritchie‘s re-imagining of Sherlock Holmes has its first teaser trailer.
—James Hibberd, HollywoodReporter, 18 Dec. 2025
Young Sherlock follows the origin story of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s beloved detective in a re-imagining of the iconic character’s early days.
—Denise Petski, Deadline, 9 Dec. 2025
Even so, his imagining of America has become one of the country’s most iconic symphonic statements.
—Sheila Regan, Twin Cities, 5 Dec. 2025
This is a frankly majestic imagining of 16th-century feudal Japan filled with paddy fields, winding valleys, windswept plains, and teeming towns all knitted together into a virtual tapestry of striking geographic verisimilitude.
—Lewis Gordon, Vulture, 3 Dec. 2025
Jordan, who made his directorial debut in 2023 with Creed III, suggested a new imagining of The Thomas Crown Affair to Amazon MGM Studios.
—Carly Tagen-Dye, PEOPLE, 29 Nov. 2025
The songs arise from the all time he’s spent alone, reading Flannery O’Connor and catching Terence Malick’s Badlands (another imagining of the Starkweather-Fugate saga) on TV.
—Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 24 Oct. 2025
Verb
But investors are so skittish that a recent viral blog post imagining a bleak AI future was enough to spark a selloff.
—semafor.com, 25 Feb. 2026
So, there’s a way in which land offers, figuratively and literally, fertile space for imagining a way of life, a way of being, that can be sustainable, that can be flourishing.
—Lisa Deaderick, San Diego Union-Tribune, 21 Feb. 2026
A lot of it is imagining what would happen behind closed doors given their circumstances.
—Lexi Carson, HollywoodReporter, 19 Feb. 2026
Fleming ends the piece by imagining a day when all the boomers show up on the White House lawn ominously holding their indecipherable Bitmoji over their heads.
—John Roy, Vulture, 19 Feb. 2026
But importantly, the model is not actually imagining anything or engaging in any deliberation, just reproducing patterns in how people talk or write about these counterfactuals.
—Walter Quattrociocchi, Scientific American, 18 Feb. 2026
There’s something about studying real-life situations that have happened and then creating and imagining into this fictional kind of characterization of things.
—Leigh Nordstrom, Footwear News, 17 Feb. 2026
There simply isn't a better composer for imagining the sound of a new world.
—Alex Galbraith, Entertainment Weekly, 15 Feb. 2026
Writing clues invites out-of-the-box thinking, like imagining how a book’s movie trailer would look.
—Jess Decourcy Hinds
february 13, Literary Hub, 13 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for imagining
Noun
-
The tobacco trials — which took place over decades but began to shift in favor of plaintiffs in the ’90s — similarly saw various types of plaintiffs file a wave of lawsuits, contributing to the release of internal documents and testing new legal theories.—
Clare Duffy,
CNN Money,
22 Feb. 2026
-
Analysts offer competing, somewhat contradictory theories about the software selloff.—
Daniel de Visé,
USA Today,
22 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Trump wanted to change the colors to red, white and blue, envisioning a patriotic theme.—
Jenna Prestininzi,
Freep.com,
19 Feb. 2026
-
Land’s writings from the nineties have a seductive danger, envisioning a sci-fi future of synthetic drugs, black-market brain implants, gene editing, and cyborgs.—
James Duesterberg,
New Yorker,
18 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Many analysts and economists are thinking along similar lines, with Deutsche Bank Research Institute recently prompting a proprietary AI tool to forecast what jobs its AI brethren would eliminate, and how.—
Nick Lichtenberg,
Fortune,
23 Feb. 2026
-
Taking no questions, the DA offered no indication of his or his office’s thinking on the matter.—
Dominic Patten,
Deadline,
23 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Woods kept everyone guessing — a favorite hobby of his — with one word and a smug grin last week at Riviera when he was asked if playing in the Masters was off the table.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
24 Feb. 2026
-
The bottom line Selling gold for the most money isn't about guessing where prices go next.—
Angelica Leicht,
CBS News,
23 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
And even the Panthers, Inter Miami and Canes football had endured long dry spells off the national radar until recently, while all the while the Heat relentlessly won, relentlessly competed, the consistent success taken for granted by the mere assumption of it — the standard Pat Riley built here.—
Greg Cote
February 25,
Miami Herald,
25 Feb. 2026
-
If California is serious about safety, the next governor must ground their approach in evidence instead of fear, slogans, media hype, or outdated assumptions.—
Jose Bernal,
Oc Register,
24 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
The trio created fake Minnesota temporary drivers’ licenses using false names, with each license picturing one of the Thomases, federal prosecutors said.—
Louis Casiano,
FOXNews.com,
9 Feb. 2026
-
Instead of picturing that exercise as long and gruesome, try breaking it up.—
Avery Newmark,
AJC.com,
23 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Their bromance reaches a fever pitch when Sloan begins believing that Shepherd is trying to poach Avery for neurosurgery.—
Melina Khan,
USA Today,
20 Feb. 2026
-
Set primarily in present-day Wonderland, the new movie begins with Red and Chloe hiding the time-traveling pocket watch inside the Royal Vault, believing that no one else will find it.—
Sydney Bucksbaum,
Entertainment Weekly,
20 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
That changed a bit on a sunny Saturday in San Francisco, the contest assuming a smidgen of campaign heat — chanting crowds, sign-waving supporters, call-and-response from the audience — as the state party held its annual convention in this bluest of cities.—
Mark Z. Barabak,
Mercury News,
25 Feb. 2026
-
The mayor is expecting to distribute the payments before the end of March, assuming the ordinance passes both its first and final readings, with a final vote anticipated on March 10.—
Verónica Egui Brito,
Miami Herald,
24 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Imagining.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/imagining. Accessed 28 Feb. 2026.
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