Meaning & use
ultimate dream
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Meaning
phrasefixed phrase
The one thing a person wants most in life, more than anything else.
Grammar: Countable phrase: you can say 'my ultimate dream' or 'her ultimate dream', and it often takes 'of' or 'to': the ultimate dream of owning a farm.
Patterns
- someone's ultimate dream
- the ultimate dream of doing something
- the ultimate dream for someone
Winning an Olympic medal was her ultimate dream from the age of six.
His ultimate dream is to open a small bakery by the sea.
For many young players, playing in the World Cup is the ultimate dream.
Common combinations
- achieve your ultimate dream
- She worked for twenty years to achieve her ultimate dream.
- live your ultimate dream
- After retiring, they moved to Italy and lived their ultimate dream.
- the ultimate dream come true
- Getting that job was the ultimate dream come true.
- someone's ultimate dream is to do something
- My ultimate dream is to write a novel.
Synonyms and how they differ
- ambition
- More neutral and general; it can refer to several goals, while 'ultimate dream' stresses the single most important one.
- lifelong dream
- Very close in meaning, but it emphasizes that you have wanted it for your whole life, not just that it is the biggest.
- goal
- A practical target you can plan and measure; an ultimate dream is more emotional and may never be reached.
Word family
- ultimately adverb
- In the end; finally.
- dreamer noun
- A person who has big hopes or plans, sometimes unrealistic ones.
- dream verb
- To imagine something you want while awake, or to see images while asleep.
Commonly confused: ultimate dream or ultimate?
ultimate dream vs ultimate
'Ultimate' alone means final or best, e.g. 'the ultimate test'. 'Ultimate dream' is a set phrase and needs the noun.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'ultimate dream' correctly?
Choose one answer.
The phrase is followed by 'of + -ing' or 'to + base verb': the ultimate dream of becoming a doctor. 'To becoming' mixes the two patterns, and 'for become' and 'become' are not grammatical after this noun.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “ultimate dream”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.