seeing things
Perceiving phantom images
Seeing things means perceiving what isn't there—hallucinating or imagining visual phenomena.
The phrase usually suggests doubt about one's own perception: I could have sworn I saw someone in the window, but I must have been seeing things.
It can describe genuine hallucination or simply mistaken observation.
Atmospheric optical deception
- apparitionVisible supernatural manifestation
- illusionMisleading sensory impression
- figmentImagined thing, unreal
- delusionStubbornly held false belief
phantasm · chimera · specter · vision · phantom · afterimage · optical illusion · flash
Severe reality detachment
- schizophreniaPsychotic disorder with delusions
- deliriumAcute mental disorientation
- paranoiaIrrational persecution fears
- delusionStubbornly held false belief
bipolar · mania · dissociation · hallucination · symptom · diagnosis · episode · medication
Apparition of the dead
- spiritSoul, mood, or liquor
- apparitionVisible supernatural manifestation
- specterGhostly threatening presence
- wraithSpectral apparition of someone
poltergeist · shade · revenant · banshee · phantasm · haunting · visitation · omen
Conscious fantasy while awake
- fantasyImaginative mental wandering
- visualizationForming mental or graphical images
- make-believeImaginative play or fantasy
- mind's eyeInternal visualization capacity
reverie · invention · creative vision · dreamscape · whimsy · fiction · imaginary · pretend
Planned travel somewhere
- acidLow-pH chemical compound
- LSDPsychedelic hallucinogen
- psilocybinHallucinogenic substance from fungi
- mescalinePsychoactive cactus alkaloid
DMT · ayahuasca · hallucinogen · psychoactive · mushrooms · visuals · kaleidoscope · tracers
mirage
Atmospheric optical deception
- apparitionVisible supernatural manifestation
- illusionMisleading sensory impression
- figmentImagined thing, unreal
delusion · phantasm · chimera · specter · vision · phantom · afterimage · optical illusion · flash · shadow
psychosis
Severe reality detachment
- schizophreniaPsychotic disorder with delusions
- deliriumAcute mental disorientation
- paranoiaIrrational persecution fears
delusion · bipolar · mania · dissociation · hallucination · symptom · diagnosis · episode · medication · antipsychotic
ghost
Apparition of the dead
- spiritSoul, mood, or liquor
- apparitionVisible supernatural manifestation
- specterGhostly threatening presence
wraith · poltergeist · shade · revenant · banshee · phantasm · haunting · visitation · omen · premonition
daydream
Conscious fantasy while awake
- fantasyImaginative mental wandering
- visualizationForming mental or graphical images
- make-believeImaginative play or fantasy
mind's eye · reverie · invention · creative vision · dreamscape · whimsy · fiction · imaginary · pretend · envisioning
trip
Planned travel somewhere
- acidLow-pH chemical compound
- LSDPsychedelic hallucinogen
- psilocybinHallucinogenic substance from fungi
mescaline · DMT · ayahuasca · hallucinogen · psychoactive · mushrooms · visuals · kaleidoscope · tracers · patterns
- illusionsmirage, optical illusion, hallucination, illusion, afterimage
- Hallucinationsvisual hallucinations, auditory hallucinations, visual hallucination, auditory hallucination, hearing voices
seeing thingssane
Mentally healthy, clearheaded
lucid · clear-headed · in one's right mind · of sound mind · sober
sees, seen, seers, seeing, sight, sights, sighting, sightings, sightly