noun
phantasmagoria
fan-taz-muh-GOR-ee-uh/ˌfæntæzməˈɡɔːriə/
A shifting, dreamlike sequence of strange images or impressions.
A phantasmagoria of ships, staircases, giant flowers, and ghostly figures shifts through the mist.
Etymology
French phantasmagorie named a magic-lantern spectacle of illusory figures. The spectacle’s succession of strange images became a metaphor for a shifting, dreamlike sequence.
In context
he remained standing stupidly on the strand, staring straight before him and perceiving objects only through magnifying oscillations which rendered everything a sort of phantasmagoria
More examples
- The novel plunges readers into a phantasmagoria of strange encounters.
- In his fever, the bedroom becomes a phantasmagoria of looming shapes.
- Half-forgotten memories swirl through her mind in a phantasmagoria.
Forms
phantasmagoria · phantasmagorias
phantasmagoric adjective — Resembling a shifting sequence of dreamlike images.
Similar words
- kaleidoscope
- Emphasizes constantly changing patterns rather than strange, dreamlike impressions.
- montage
- Usually describes deliberately assembled images rather than a dreamlike flow.