Vision is the ability to see. Your eyes take in light and send signals to your brain, which turns those signals into the images you experience: your friend's face, words on a page, a ball flying toward you. People with poor vision might need glasses to see clearly, while someone with 20/20 vision has what doctors consider normal sharpness of sight.

The word also means the ability to imagine future possibilities and plan for them thoughtfully. A scientist might have a vision for curing a disease, or an architect might have a vision for a beautiful new building. This kind of vision means seeing in your mind what doesn't exist yet but could exist with effort and creativity. When people talk about a visionary leader, they mean someone who can picture a better future and inspire others to work toward it.

You might experience a vision in a dream or daydream: a vivid mental image that feels almost real. In stories, characters sometimes have visions that show them important truths or future events. These mental pictures are called visions because they can feel as clear and detailed as something you might actually see with your eyes.