What does unreality mean?
Unreality means the state or quality of not being real. It can describe the insubstantial, dreamlike character of an imagined place, an unusual experience, a fictional world, or a situation that seems detached from practical reality. Unlike the adjective unreal, which often characterizes a particular thing, unreality usually names a broader condition or atmosphere. Writers use it to suggest that something lies beyond ordinary experience, that a distinction between appearance and actuality has become unstable, or that a person feels detached from the world around them. In literary and psychological discussion, it may carry an unsettling implication, but it can also refer neutrally to fiction, fantasy, and artistic invention. The word is more literary than plain language, where an expression such as something feels unreal may sometimes be clearer. Its value lies in its ability to describe not merely a false belief, but the broader quality of lacking tangible or objective existence.
nounThe state or quality of not being real, especially the dreamlike or insubstantial character of something imagined or perceived.
- The state or quality of not being real; lack of actuality or tangible existence.
"The strange unreality of the city at dawn made it feel like a dream."
"The strange unreality of the city at dawn made it feel like a dream."
"She spoke about the dream with a kind of unreality, as if she were describing a life she had never lived."
The plural is grammatically regular but rare; unreality is normally used as an uncountable noun.
"The novel explores several unrealities created by memory and imagination."
Unreality and reality share a Latin root and even an ending, but pull in opposite directions.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does unreality come from?
Unreality is an English noun formed from unreal and the suffix -ity. The element unreal combines the negating prefix un- with real, a word ultimately borrowed from Latin realis, meaning real or genuine. Its relatives real, reality, realism, and realistic all continue this same Latin root, while unreality adds the opposite sense of being unreal or imaginary.
Related word forms
How unreality is actually used
Unreality is an abstract, somewhat literary noun. It is especially associated with dreams, fiction, hallucination, simulated environments, and emotional detachment, although its register is not limited to literary contexts.