imagination
/ɪˌmæd͡ʒəˈneɪʃən/
imagination means 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. It carries an Arena rating of 1604, earned across 5 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, imagination ranks #2,351 of 14,308 for Most Malleable Words, #2,592 of 14,423 for Most Sublime Words, #2,678 of 14,410 for Most Ponderous Words, #4,806 of 14,297 for Words That Escaped Their Books.
imagination is pronounced /ɪˌmæd͡ʒəˈneɪʃən/.
Why “imagination” is a great word
The capacity to form mental images, concepts, or ideas of things not immediately present to the senses. From Middle English ymaginacioun, from Old French imaginacion, from Latin imāginātiōn-, imāginātiō ('a fancy, imagination'), from imāginārī ('to imagine'). Unlike 'fantasy,' which suggests whimsical invention detached from reality, or 'perception,' which denotes direct sensory awareness of present objects, imagination is the neutral, generative capacity to summon the absent into presence. It is the architect walking through an unbuilt house, the child hearing an engine-roar in a cardboard box, the mourner who still knows the exact pressure of a hand now ash—the quiet, ceaseless labor by which the mind builds a world parallel to the one it inhabits.
Etymology
From Middle English ymaginacioun, from Old French imaginacion, ymaginacion, from Latin imāginātiō. Equivalent to imagine + -ation.
noun
- 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.”
- Particularly, construction of false images; fantasizing.“You think someone's been following you? That's just your imagination.”
- Creativity; resourcefulness.“His imagination makes him a valuable team member.”
- A mental image formed by the action of the imagination as a faculty; something imagined.“It is a pleasant imagination to conceive a spirit iustly ballanced betweene two equall desires.”
Words closest in meaning
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