Dream Dictionary: The 50 Most Common Dream Symbols

Dream dictionary - illustrated guide to the 50 most common dream symbols and their meanings

Dream Dictionary: Meanings of the 50 Most Common Dream Symbols

You woke up and the dream followed you. The image. The feeling. That nagging question of what it was trying to say.

This dictionary covers the 50 symbols people dream about most, from teeth falling out to tidal waves to ex-partners showing up uninvited. Each entry covers what the symbol usually points to, how the common variations change the meaning, and one question to ask yourself so the dream becomes useful instead of just strange.

Find your symbol below. New entries go up every week. If you don’t want to wait, the free guide has all 50 in one place.

We read dreams psychology-first. Every entry starts with what your mind is doing while you sleep: memory, emotion, stress. The spiritual and symbolic readings are here too, for those who want them, but they never come first.

Dream Trends: what thousands of dreamers are dreaming right now

Every month we read the dreams shared in our community of 6,700+ dreamers, count the themes, and publish what we find: the symbols surging, the patterns nobody else tracks, and what they might mean for you.

Read the latest Dream Trends report and see how your dreams compare.

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Most searched right now

Teeth Falling OutRead the meaning →
SnakesRead the meaning →
Being ChasedRead the meaning →

Start With the Dreams People Ask About Most

New here? These are the lookups our readers run first: broken mirror dream meaning, teeth falling out, snake dreams, falling, being chased, Islamic dream meanings, and recurring dreams. Newest guides: dreaming about spiders, dreaming about an ex, and visitation dreams. The full dictionary is below.

The Body : Dreams of You

Teeth Falling OutRead the meaning →
FallingRead the meaning →
FlyingRead the meaning →
Being ChasedRead the meaning →
Naked in PublicComing soon
Failing a TestComing soon
Being LateRead the meaning →
Being LostComing soon
Paralyzed / Unable to MoveComing soon
Hair Falling Out or Being CutRead the guide

Water & Weather: Dreams of Emotion

Calm Water / OceanComing soon
Turbulent Water / Tidal WaveComing soon
DrowningComing soon
RainComing soon
Storm / TornadoComing soon
HurricaneWhat storm dreams often point toRead the meaning →
Snow & IceComing soon
FireComing soon

Animals : Dreams of Instinct

SnakesRead the meaning →
SpidersRead the guide →
DogsComing soon
CatIntuition, independence, and mysteryRead the meaning →
BirdsComing soon
BearsComing soon
LionsComing soon
FishComing soon

Places & Journeys : Dreams of Direction

House with Unknown RoomsComing soon
SchoolComing soon
Driving a CarComing soon
Out-of-Control VehicleComing soon
ElevatorComing soon
StairsComing soon
BridgeComing soon
TunnelComing soon
DoorComing soon

People : Dreams of Relationship

Death (Your Own or a Loved One’s)Read the guide →
Ex-PartnerRead the guide →
CelebrityComing soon
BabyComing soon
PregnancyComing soon
Being Cheated OnComing soon
WeddingComing soon
Islamic DreamsRu’ya vs hulm and the Ibn Sirin traditionRead the meaning →

Objects : Dreams of Daily Life

MoneyComing soon
KeysComing soon
Losing Your Phone or WalletComing soon
MirrorComing soon
Broken MirrorSelf-image and the truth about the 7-year mythRead the meaning →
ClockComing soon
Food / EatingComing soon
ClothesComing soon
GardenComing soon
DarknessComing soon

In-Depth Guides : Dreams, Explored Fully

Don’t want to wait? Get all 50 now.

The 50 Most Common Dream Symbols, our free quick-reference guide. Every symbol in this dictionary, decoded in plain English, in one PDF you can keep by your bed.

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Dream interpretation is for self-reflection and entertainment. It isn’t medical or psychological advice.

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Real dreams, fully interpreted: Our new series takes real dreams from our Facebook community and gives each one the full interpretation treatment, symbol by symbol. Start with Dream Case Files #1: The Barber Who Consulted the Gods.

Go deeper

dream data: the State of Dreams report