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PlainSpell

daydream

/ˈdeɪdɹiːm/noun, verb

daydream is spelled D-A-Y-D-R-E-A-M: 8 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 29,649th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, daydream means “A spontaneous series of thoughts while awake not connected to immediate reality” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of daydream is daydreams.

How many letters and syllables are in daydream?

Letters8: D-A-Y-D-R-E-A-M
Syllables2 (from its American pronunciation)
In writingabout once in every 1 million words; the 29,649th most frequent word form
Wrong spellings searchednone measured in search

Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).

How common is daydream?

Daydream appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 29,649th most frequent word form in the list.

Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).

How do you pronounce daydream?

  • /ˈdeɪdɹiːm/
  • [ˈdeɪdɹiːm]
  • [ˈdeɪd͡ʒɹiːm]

Daydream has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-daydream.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).

Forms of daydream

  • daydreams plural, present, singular, he/she/it
  • daydreaming participle, present
  • daydreamt participle, past
  • daydreamed participle, past

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

What does daydream mean?

The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).

noun

  1. 1

    A spontaneous series of thoughts while awake not connected to immediate reality.

verb

  1. 1

    To have such a series of thoughts; to woolgather.

    Stop daydreaming and get back to work!

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

Daydream in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese

LanguageWords
Frenchrêverie (a spontaneous and fanciful series of thoughts), rêvasser, rêver (to have such a series of thoughts)
GermanTagtraum (a spontaneous and fanciful series of thoughts), tagträumen, träumen (to have such a series of thoughts)
Portuguesesonho acordado (a spontaneous and fanciful series of thoughts), sonhar acordado, pensar na morte da bezerra (to have such a series of thoughts)
Spanishensueño diurno, fantasía, ensueño despierto (a spontaneous and fanciful series of thoughts), soñar despierto, pensar en la inmortalidad del cangrejo, fantasear (to have such a series of thoughts)

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.

Where does daydream come from?

From day + dream. Compare West Frisian deidream (“daydream”), Dutch dagdroom (“daydream”), German Tagtraum (“daydream”), Swedish dagdröm (“daydream”), Icelandic dagdraumur (“daydream”).

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

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