How do you use the word "surreal" in a sentence?

Here are real-life examples of using "surreal": The Russian Ballet was surreal! It was kind of surreal.

Surreal Meaning

/səˈɹiː(.ə)l/

Definition, CEFR level B2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.

Definition

adjResembling a dream: fantastic and incongruous.

nounA surreal number.

Sentence Examples

The Russian Ballet was surreal!

It was kind of surreal.

I'm learning to make surreal art in Photoshop.

Synonyms & Antonyms

Synonyms:

unreal unrealistic

Antonyms:

real realistic

CEFR Practice Quiz

The painting of melting clocks and floating objects created a highly ____ dreamlike atmosphere.

CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)

Walking through the empty streets of the city late at night felt very ____ and almost like a strange dream today.

Word Origin & History

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *úp Proto-Indo-European *-er Proto-Indo-European *upér Proto-Italic *super Latin super Latin super- Old French sur- French sur- Proto-Indo-European *(H)reh₁-der. Proto-Indo-European *(H)reh₁ís Proto-Italic *reis Latin rēs Proto-Indo-European *h₂el-der.? Proto-Italic *-ālis Late Latin -ālis Late Latin reālisder. Old French reel Middle French real French réel Proto-Indo-European *-id- Proto-Indo-European *-yéti Proto-Indo-European *-idyéti Proto-Hellenic *-íďďō Ancient Greek -ῐ́ζω (-ĭ́zō) Proto-Indo-European *-mos Proto-Indo-European *-mós Ancient Greek -μός (-mós) Ancient Greek -ῐσμός (-ĭsmós)der. Latin -ismusbor. French -isme French réalisme French surréalismebor. English surrealismbf. English surreal A back-formation from surrealism, equivalent to sur- + real.

Literary Quotations & Historical Citations

"Three weeks after the second Time meltdown cover, one day after Leonard Cohen died, Donald Trump pulled off one of the greatest upsets in American political history. That’s when 2016 went from being a bad dream to full-on waking nightmare, one that’s just gotten worse and worse, and more and more surreal." — 2016 December 19, Dave Bry, “'Surreal' is Merriam-Webster's word of the year. Sounds about right”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:

"Incomprehensible violence and the tragedy that follows, the implication goes, inject a surreal dimension into existence. The conspiracy theories and social upheavals spawned by our own world’s mass departures—and, Lindelof has noted, electoral surprises—suggest that the strangeness of The Leftovers is mostly one of degree, not kind." — 2017 June 16, Spencer Kornhaber, “The Dizzying, Surreal Journey of ‘The Leftovers’”, in The Atlantic, →ISSN:

"As people gushed over and grappled with the model’s capabilities, to a degree that exceeded many employees’ expectations, the web app [DALL·E 2] went viral across social media, producing a plethora of wild, wacky, and surreal AI-generated art in its wake." — 2025, Karen Hao, Empire of AI, New York City: Penguin Press, →ISBN:

"Mr. Trump’s surreal endeavor to conquer Greenland is of a piece with his general hostility to Europe." — 2026 January 9, James Kirchick, “Greenland Is Only the Beginning. Trump Has His Sights Set on Europe.”, in The New York Times, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC:

"Other moments of grace played out during an otherwise surreal evening." — 2026 April 26, Linda Feldmann, “After the gunfire: Moments of grace at White House correspondents’ dinner”, in The Christian Science Monitor, Boston, Massachusetts: Christian Science Publishing Society, →ISSN, →OCLC:

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