# surreal

/sɝˈiɫ/ (US) · /səɹˈiəl/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/surreal
Updated: 2026-06-20

## Senses

### 1. dreamlike and strange

adjective · CEFR B2

very strange or unusual, like something you would see in a dream.

For teachers: resembling a dream in its bizarre, illogical, or fantastic quality; often involves the juxtaposition of incongruous elements.

- Standing in the middle of the empty stadium felt completely surreal.
- The experience of walking through the abandoned city was utterly surreal, as if we had stepped directly into a painting by Salvador Dalí.

### 2. a type of number

noun · CEFR C2 · Technical

a special kind of number used in advanced mathematics.

For teachers: an element of a field that includes all real numbers as well as infinite and infinitesimal numbers.

- The professor explained how surreal numbers can represent games.
- In combinatorial game theory, surreals provide a powerful framework for evaluating the values of various positions in a game.

Usage: Usually used in the plural form 'surreals' or as the compound 'surreal number'.

## Examples

- Walking through the empty city at night felt completely surreal.
- It was surreal to see my childhood teacher at a heavy metal concert in another country.
- The film uses surreal imagery, such as clocks melting over tree branches, to represent the protagonist's deteriorating sense of time and memory.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.