chimera

noun

kī-ˈmir-ə How to pronounce chimera (audio)
Definition of chimeranext
as in illusion
a conception or image created by the imagination and having no objective reality a monster in the closet would not have been the first chimera that the boy had seen in his mind's eye

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of chimera The answer to all these questions is My Lady Jane, which blends together what should be a hodgepodge of mismatched elements into a wildly entertaining historical romance/fantasy/comedy/action chimera. — Matt Kamen, WIRED, 30 Nov. 2024 Sing Sing may be an awkward chimera of a film, combining vibrant source material with synthetic attempts to serve as a star vehicle, but its insistence on the healing capacity of art is enough to soften the hardest of hearts. — Alison Willmore, Vulture, 12 July 2024 The chimera of another righteous military triumph cannot fix what ails the United States. — Andrew J. Bacevich, Foreign Affairs, 28 Feb. 2023 Yet, the reality is starkly different: Such a formula is a chimera. — Pankaj Vasani, Forbes, 9 Sep. 2024 See All Example Sentences for chimera
Recent Examples of Synonyms for chimera
  1. illusion
  2. dream
  3. fantasy
  4. daydream
  5. vision
  6. delusion
Noun
  • The wide front porch gives the illusion that the open-plan living and kitchen area extends past the exterior walls, through the (optional) all-glass double doors to the great outdoors.
    — Olivia Young, Travel + Leisure, 15 Mar. 2025
  • The actress added square-toe boots and wore her blonde hair in a slicked style. 12 of 18 Alessandra Ambrosio For the Balenciaga Paris Fashion Week show, Alessandra Ambrosio opted for a navy blue sweater paired with illusion lingerie on the bottom.
    — Catherine Santino, People.com, 11 Mar. 2025
Definition of illusion
Noun
  • Getting a glimpse into Garten’s life story is fascinating, and her cheerful demeanor and can-do attitude will galvanize you to chase your dreams.
    — Meg Zukin, Los Angeles Times, 22 Mar. 2025
  • Still shopping around for the house of your dreams?
    — Merrell Readman, Travel + Leisure, 22 Mar. 2025
Definition of dream
Noun
  • Surely Shirley reside in a breezy fantasy, one unsullied by grit or grime, one that wears its sweet disposition as a point of pride.
    — Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Rolling Stone, 13 Mar. 2025
  • Its packaging, a jewel-like blue bottle engraved with a golden lotus, looks like it was plucked from a fantasy apothecary in the night sky.
    — Jenny Berg, Allure, 13 Mar. 2025
Definition of fantasy
Noun
  • The entries are a mixture of sense memory, adolescent embarrassment, nostalgic fashions and foods, daydreams, and anything else that falls through the sieve of Brainard’s disarmingly casual syntax.
    — David S. Wallace, The New Yorker, 19 Mar. 2025
  • Panda Bear: Sinister Grift [Domino] Noah Lennox brings the sunshine—and, for the first time on a Panda Bear album, nearly all of his Animal Collective bandmates—on Sinister Grift, an album of spongy psychedelic daydreams and melodies that yearn and enchant.
    — Madison Bloom, Pitchfork, 28 Feb. 2025
Definition of daydream
Noun
  • His lack of physical presence was an issue for O’Neil but his game is even further removed from Pereira’s vision of an ideal centre-back, so a parting of the ways there in the summer also appears likely.
    — Steve Madeley, The Athletic, 14 Mar. 2025
  • This vision of the future is becoming increasingly real thanks to advancements in autonomous driving technology.
    — Kurt Knutsson, CyberGuy Report, Fox News, 13 Mar. 2025
Definition of vision
Noun
  • The guests are just monkeys with delusions of grandeur and civilization.
    — Joe Joyce, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 14 Mar. 2025
  • The series, produced by AMC Studios, is set within the delusion bubble of Silicon Valley.
    — Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 7 Mar. 2025
Definition of delusion

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“Chimera.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/chimera. Accessed 26 Mar. 2025.

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More from Merriam-Webster on chimera

Nglish: Translation of chimera for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about chimera

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