Dream up means to invent something new: a plan, a story, an excuse, an unusual solution. It has no direct link to sleep or daydreams. It often suggests that the idea is unusual, fanciful or even silly: Who dreamed up this rule? means “Whose bright idea was this rule?”
Want to use dream up in conversation?
Write a sentence — we'll show the mistakes right away and suggest how to say it more naturally.
The check is taking longer than usual. Your feedback will appear here automatically.
dream up + idea/plan/excuse/story; dream + it/them + up; dreamed/dreamt up
- Our designer dreamed up a clever logo in one evening, and the client loved it.
- Who dreamt up the rule that we can't drink coffee at our desks?
- Kids can dream up whole worlds with just a cardboard box and some paint.
What changed
First versionWho dreamed up with the idea of a meeting at 8 a.m. on Monday?
RevisionWho dreamed up the idea of a meeting at 8 a.m. on Monday?
The mistake comes from come up with, where up is followed by with. Dream up takes what was invented directly, with no preposition: dream up an idea, dream up a plan. So with was removed.
Come up with is the neutral way to say you thought of something: She came up with a good plan. Dream up adds a touch of fantasy: for a bold advertising idea it's praise, for a strange rule it's criticism. If you simply want to praise a colleague's idea, come up with is the safer choice.
Your turn
My brother missed the deadline and ___ a story about a broken laptop.
Show the answer
dreamed up — Your brother invented a story to excuse missing the deadline, so dreamed up. Dreamed about would mean the story came to him in a dream or that he longed for it.
Describe an unusual idea that someone came up with at work, at school or at home. Say who thought of it and what makes it unusual.
My flatmate dreamed up a chore lottery: every Sunday we pull names out of a hat, so nobody can argue about cleaning the bathroom.
Learn to use new words without mistakes
Write phrases with the words you are learning. LetsWords shows mistakes in usage and grammar, suggests corrections and explains them, and review helps the words stick.