nightmare

night·mare

Use nightmare in a sentence

This girl has had a nightmare.

noun

The definition of a nightmare is a bad dream, or an experience that is like a bad dream.

An example of a nightmare is a dream of a monster that wakes a child.
An example of a nightmare is a family having a flat tire on a busy freeway.

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"nightmare." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 18 December 2018. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/nightmare>.

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nightmare. (n.d.). Retrieved December 18th, 2018, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/nightmare

nightmare

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

Origin of nightmare

Middle English nihtmare: see night and mare

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MLA Style

"nightmare." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 18 December 2018. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/nightmare>.

APA Style

nightmare. (n.d.). Retrieved December 18th, 2018, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/nightmare

nightmare

noun

A dream arousing feelings of intense fear, horror, and distress.
An event or experience that is intensely distressing.
A demon or spirit once thought to plague sleeping people.

Origin of nightmare

Middle English a female demon that afflicts sleeping people night night ; see night . mare goblin ( from Old English; see mer- in Indo-European roots.)

Related Forms:

night′mar′ish
adjective

night′mar′ish·ly
adverb

night′mar′ish·ness
noun

THE AMERICAN HERITAGE® DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, FIFTH EDITION by the Editors of the American Heritage Dictionaries. Copyright © 2016, 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

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MLA Style

"nightmare." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 18 December 2018. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/nightmare>.

APA Style

nightmare. (n.d.). Retrieved December 18th, 2018, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/nightmare

Noun

(plural nightmares)

(now rare) A female demon or monster, thought to plague people while they slept and cause a feeling of suffocation and terror during sleep.
A very bad or frightening dream.
I had a nightmare that I tried to run but could neither move nor breathe.
(figuratively) Any bad, miserable, difficult or terrifying situation or experience that arouses anxiety, terror, agony or great displeasure.
Cleaning up after identity theft can be a nightmare of phone calls and letters.

Origin

From Middle English nightemare, niÈtmare, equivalent to night +"Ž mare (“evil spirit believed to afflict a sleeping person"). Cognate with Scots nichtmare, nichtmeer (“nightmare"), Dutch nachtmerrie (“nightmare"), Middle Low German nachtmÄr (“nightmare"), German Nachtmahr (“nightmare").

English Wiktionary. Available under CC-BY-SA license.

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MLA Style

"nightmare." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 18 December 2018. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/nightmare>.

APA Style

nightmare. (n.d.). Retrieved December 18th, 2018, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/nightmare

nightmare - Medical Definition

n.

A dream arousing feelings of intense fear, horror, and distress.
An event or experience that is intensely distressing.

Related Forms:

night′mar′ish
adj.

night′mar′ish·ly
adv.

night′mar′ish·ness
n.

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Link to this page

Cite this page

MLA Style

"nightmare." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 18 December 2018. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/nightmare>.

APA Style

nightmare. (n.d.). Retrieved December 18th, 2018, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/nightmare

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nightmare

nightmare

nightmare

nightmare - Medical Definition

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nightmare

nightmare

nightmare

nightmare - Medical Definition

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Words near nightmare in the dictionary

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