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dreamy

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Etymology and origin of the English word dreamy

Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
1567
Ultimate origins
Middle English dreemEnglish -y
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
English dream
English dreamy

Pronunciation

  • UK: /ˈdɹiː.mi/[1]

Etymology

It is formed from English dream + -y.[2][3][4][5] The OED compares Middle Low German drȫmig (“sleepy”) and Middle High German troumic (“full of dreams”), and the earlier English dreamish and dreaming.[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

Merriam-Webster dates the word to 1567, and Etymonline to the 1560s, in the sense "full of dreams".[5][3] The OED's first record is before 1594, in Greenham's sermons, for "of the nature of a dream", then illusory or false.[2]

Semantic evolution

The word first described what belongs to dreams, especially sleep full of dreams (1597, in Middleton),[2][4] and things as unreal or false as a dream.[2] From the late 18th century it was used of people given to daydreaming, first in Coleridge (1794),[2] and since 1845 of idealistic or impractical ideas.[2] The sense "vague, indistinct, dreamlike" is dated by Etymonline to 1848.[3] The colloquial sense "perfect, delightful", especially of an attractive man, began in the United States: the OED finds it in 1892,[2] and Etymonline notes it as a vogue word of American teenagers in 1941;[3] Green's Dictionary of Slang calls it originally US teen slang.[6]

Timeline

  • 1567 – full of dreams.[5][3]
  • before 1594 – of the nature of a dream; illusory, unreal.[2]
  • 1597 – of sleep, full of dreams.[2]
  • 1794 – given to daydreaming; absent-minded.[2]
  • 1845 – idealistic, impractical.[2]
  • 1892 – perfect, delightful; of a person, very attractive.[2]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. Like a dream; vague, hazy or unreal: the dreamy light of early morning.[7][5][2]
  2. Given to daydreaming; absent-minded or lost in thought: a dreamy boy who stared out of the window.[7][5][2]
  3. Idealistic and impractical.[7][2]
  4. Soothing and gentle: dreamy guitar music.[7]
  5. (informal) Wonderful; of a person, very attractive.[7][2][6]
  6. Full of dreams, or causing dreams: a dreamy sleep.[2][4][7]

Word family

  • dreamily
  • dreaminess

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b c d e Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b c Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  5. ^ a b c d e Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ a b Green, Jonathon (2010), Green's Dictionary of Slang, London: Chambers; digital ed. 2016–, https://greensdictofslang.com
  7. ^ a b c d e f Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
Cite this entry

“Dreamy.” Etymologically, 1 Nov. 2026, etymologically.com/en/dreamy. Accessed 1 Nov. 2026.

Last edited on . ·