dreamed

Dreamed is the past tense and past participle of the verb dream. It primarily denotes experiences that a person has during sleep, when the mind creates images, sounds, and narratives. Dreams can be vivid or faint and may occur during any stage of sleep, though they are most commonly reported after REM sleep. The word is also used metaphorically to describe imagined scenarios, goals, or plans, as in “she dreamed a better future.”

In American English, dreamed is the standard past tense; in British English, dreamt is more common, though dreamed is widely accepted in modern usage.

Etymology: The noun and verb derive from Old English drēam, which referred to excitement, joy, or music and later came to denote a visionary experience. The verb form developed in the Middle English period, aligning with the sense of mental imagery during sleep.

Usage notes: Dreamed is typically used in past-tense narratives and reports of remembered sleep experiences. In scientific contexts, researchers distinguish dream content, dream reports, and the sleep stages (notably REM) associated with dreaming. In everyday language, “dreamed up” and “dreaming” describe imagined or invented ideas rather than actual nocturnal experiences.

See also: Dream; REM sleep; Nightmares; Daydream.