Meaning & use
imagine
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Meanings
verbtransitive
To form a picture or idea of something in your mind, especially something you cannot see or have not experienced.
Grammar: Takes an object, an -ing form or a clause: imagine the sea; imagine living there; imagine that you won.
Patterns
- imagine something
- imagine doing something
- imagine that something is true
- imagine someone doing something
Close your eyes and imagine a quiet beach at sunrise.
I can't imagine living without a phone.
Imagine how surprised she'll be when she sees the cake.
verbtransitive
To suppose or assume something is probably true, often without being sure.
Grammar: Usually followed by a clause: I imagine you are tired.
Patterns
- I imagine (that) something
- imagine something to be something
I imagine the shop will be closed by the time we get there.
You must be hungry, I imagine.
He imagined she would call back, but she never did.
verbtransitive
To believe something is real or true when it is actually not.
Grammar: Often followed by a clause or a noun that turns out to be false: you imagined it.
Patterns
- imagine something
- imagine (that) something happened
I thought I heard a knock, but I must have imagined it.
She imagined that everyone was staring at her.
Don't tell me you imagined the whole conversation.
Word forms
| third person singular | imagines |
|---|---|
| past tense | imagined |
| past participle | imagined |
| -ing form | imagining |
Common combinations
- can't imagine
- I can't imagine why he left so early.
- imagine yourself
- Imagine yourself on a mountain top with nothing but silence around you.
- hard to imagine
- It is hard to imagine the city without its old bridge.
- vividly imagine
- She could vividly imagine the scene described in the letter.
- imagine the possibilities
- With a bigger budget, just imagine the possibilities.
Synonyms and how they differ
- picture
- Picture stresses forming a clear visual image, while imagine can cover any idea, including sounds, feelings or situations.
- envisage
- Envisage is more formal and usually concerns plans or future outcomes, whereas imagine also covers pure fantasy.
- suppose
- Suppose means to assume something is true, a use shared with imagine's second sense, but it does not involve forming a mental picture.
- fancy
- Fancy is informal and British, often showing mild surprise, as in 'Fancy meeting you here', which imagine would not usually do.
Word family
- imagination noun
- The ability to form ideas or pictures in the mind.
- imaginative adjective
- Showing original or creative ideas.
- imaginary adjective
- Existing only in the mind, not real.
- imaginable adjective
- Possible to think of, as in every imaginable color.
- unimaginable adjective
- Too extreme or strange to picture.
Commonly confused: imagine or imaginary? imagine or imaginative?
imagine vs imaginary
Imaginary describes something that exists only in the mind, like an imaginary friend. Imaginative describes a person or idea full of creativity.
imagine vs imaginative
Imaginative means creative and inventive, as in an imaginative story. It does not mean unreal.
Practice
Which sentence uses imagine correctly?
Choose one answer.
Imagine is followed by an -ing form (imagine living), not a to-infinitive, a bare verb or a for-phrase.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “imagine”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.