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Imagination

 - 4 dictionary results

im⋅ag⋅i⋅na⋅tion

  [i-maj-uh-ney-shuhn]
Use Imagination in a Sentence
–noun
1. the faculty of imagining, or of forming mental images or concepts of what is not actually present to the senses.
2. the action or process of forming such images or concepts.
3. the faculty of producing ideal creations consistent with reality, as in literature, as distinct from the power of creating illustrative or decorative imagery. Compare fancy (def. 2).
4. the product of imagining; a conception or mental creation, often a baseless or fanciful one.
5. ability to face and resolve difficulties; resourcefulness: a job that requires imagination.
6. Psychology. the power of reproducing images stored in the memory under the suggestion of associated images (reproductive imagination) or of recombining former experiences in the creation of new images directed at a specific goal or aiding in the solution of problems (creative imagination).
7. (in Kantian epistemology) synthesis of data from the sensory manifold into objects by means of the categories.
8. Archaic. a plan, scheme, or plot.
Origin:
1300–50; ME < L imāginātiōn- (s. of imāginātiō) fancy, equiv. to imāgināt(us) ptp. of imāginārī to imagine (imāgin-, s. of imāgō image + -ātus -ate 1 ) + -iōn- -ion

Related forms:
i⋅mag⋅i⋅na⋅tion⋅al, adjective

Synonyms:
3. See fancy. 5. ingenuity, enterprise, thought.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To Imagination
i·mag·i·na·tion   (ĭ-māj'ə-nā'shən)   
n.  

    1. The formation of a mental image of something that is neither perceived as real nor present to the senses.

    2. The mental image so formed.

    3. The ability or tendency to form such images.

    4. An unrealistic idea or notion; a fancy.

    5. A plan or scheme.

  2. The ability to confront and deal with reality by using the creative power of the mind; resourcefulness: handled the problems with great imagination.

  3. A traditional or widely held belief or opinion.

  4. Archaic

    1. An unrealistic idea or notion; a fancy.

    2. A plan or scheme.

i·mag'i·na'tion·al adj.
Synonyms: These nouns refer to the power of the mind to form images, especially of what is not present to the senses. Imagination is the most broadly applicable: "In the world of words, the imagination is one of the forces of nature" (Wallace Stevens).
Fancy especially suggests mental invention that is whimsical, capricious, or playful and that is characteristically well removed from reality: "All power of fancy over reason is a degree of insanity" (Samuel Johnson).
Fantasy is applied principally to elaborate or extravagant fancy as a product of the imagination given free rein: "The poet is in command of his fantasy, while it is exactly the mark of the neurotic that he is possessed by his fantasy" (Lionel Trilling).
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: imag·i·na·tion
Pronunciation: im-"aj-&-'nA-sh&n
Function: noun
: an act or process of forming a conscious idea ormental image of something never before wholly perceived in reality by the one forming the images (as through a synthesis of remembered elements of previous sensory experiences or ideas as modified byunconscious defense mechanisms); also : the ability or gift of forming such conscious ideas or mental images especially for the purposes of artistic or intellectual creation
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Idioms & Phrases

imagination

see figment of one's imagination.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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