imagination

Etymology

From Old French imaginacion, from Latin imāginātiō.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɪˌmædʒəˈneɪʃən/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -eɪʃən

Noun

imagination (countable and uncountable, plural imaginations)

1. The image-making power of the mind; the act of mentally creating or reproducing an object not previously perceived; the ability to create such images.

   Imagination is one of the most advanced human faculties.

   • 1913, Robert Barr, chapter 5, in Lord Stranleigh Abroad‎:

     She removed Stranleigh’s coat with a dexterity that aroused his imagination.

2. Particularly, construction of false images; fantasizing.

   You think someone's been following you? That's just your imagination.

3. Creativity; resourcefulness.

   His imagination makes him a valuable team member.

4. A mental image formed by the action of the imagination as a faculty; something imagined.

   Synonyms: conception, notion, imagining

   • 1597, Francis Bacon, "Of Youth and Age", Essays:

     And yet the invention of young men, is more lively than that of old; and imaginations stream into their minds better, and, as it were, more divinely.

Etymology

From Middle French, from Old French imaginacion, from Latin imāginātiō.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /i.ma.ʒi.na.sjɔ̃/

• Audio

  (file)

Noun

imagination f (plural imaginations)

1. (countable and uncountable) imagination

Further reading

• “imagination” in le Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

Alternative forms

• ymagination

Etymology

From Old French imaginacion, from Latin imāginātiō.

Noun

imagination f (plural imaginations)

1. (countable and uncountable) imagination
2. thought; reflection; idea