nightmare Hear it!

nightmare Definition

night·mare (nītmer′)

noun

  1. Folklore, Historical an evil spirit believed to haunt and suffocate sleeping people
  2. a frightening dream, often accompanied by a sensation of oppression and helplessness
  3. any experience like a nightmare in its frightening or oppressing aspects

Etymology: ME nihtmare: see night & mare

nightmare Related Forms
night·mar′·ish adjective
nightmare Synonyms

nightmare

n.

  1. A dream

    bad dream, horror, incubus; see dream 1, fantasy 2, illusion 1, vision 3, 4.

  2. An unpleasant experience

    ordeal, torture, trial, bummer*, bad trip*.

nightmare Usage Examples

Converse of subject

  • haunt: Consequently nights at Gillingham were haunted by nightmares of lions ' ( Dorset Year Book 1966/7 p49 ).
  • plague: She then becomes plagued by nightmares about a macabre, amorphous being stalking her.

Converse of object

  • recur: Despite City being a considerably stronger side the away trip has been something of a recurring nightmare for us.
  • relive: Forever cursed ( Or blessed ) With memories Lagging behind... Savoring the moments Or reliving the nightmares Like a lazy wanderer.
  • wake: I have this waking nightmare of hundreds of little Russians speaking English in a heavy Welsh farmer accent.
  • suffer: David finished his two minutes of amiable babbling and suffered the nightmare of all public speakers.
  • become: You're site has become a nightmare to read!
  • live: The last 8 years have been a living nightmare for many of our older people.

Adjective modifier

  • logistical: Planning a wedding can turn into a logistical nightmare.
  • bureaucratic: Are the proposed Home Information Packs going to be a bureaucratic nightmare?
  • Orwellian: Is it some Orwellian nightmare, a Big Brother state?
  • recurrent: He would gladly pay good money to any psychologist who can cure him of the recurrent nightmares.
  • terrifying: When I tried to fall asleep to try and have some respite from the pain, I had terrifying nightmares.
  • absolute: To be honest, debt was an absolute nightmare.

Modifies a noun

  • scenario: There is even a nightmare scenario where they might not even get the pensions which have in theory already accrued.
  • vision: In fact, this was the location for the filming of the " The Clockwork Orange " - a nightmare vision of the future.
  • neighbor: It will target binge-drinkers, parents of out-of-control children, and " nightmare neighbor " households.
  • journey: This morning, because of a nightmare journey on the tube I was walking over an hour later.

Noun used with modifier

  • childhood: This NYC band is made up of childhood nightmares.
  • living: Our living streets, in short, have become a living nightmare.
nightmare Quotes

History, Stephen said, is a nightmare from which I am trying to awake.

—Joyce,James Augustine Aloysius

   Forests of middle-aged men in dark suits†all slightly redfaced from eating and drinking too much†a nightmare of elderly white males.

—Abbott, DianeJulie

   In the nightmare of the dark All the dogs of Europe bark, And the living nations wait, Each sequestered in its hate.

—Auden,W(ystan) H(ugh)

Browse dictionary entries near nightmare

  1. nightly
  2. nightlong
  3. nightjar
  4. nightingale
  5. nightie
  6. nighthawk
  7. nightgown
  8. nightglow
  9. nightfall
  10. nightdress
  1. nightrider
  2. nights
  3. nightshade
  4. nightshirt
  5. nightside
  6. nightspot
  7. nightstand
  8. nightstick
  9. nighttide
  10. nighttime