Background

What are flying dreams about?

The DreamWell Dream Dictionary is based upon insights from 1,200 dream symbols in over 200,000 dreams. Let’s see what the data has to say about flying dreams.

The word cloud above shows the words that are specifically associated with flying dreams. These are the words that make flying dreams unique compared to all other dream symbols. Just examining the graph and reading the words of flying dreams can be illuminating about show flying affect our dreams. Be sure to check out the example flying dreams at the bottom of the page.

The circular bar chart above shows how flying in a dream will affect dream content as compared to other dream symbols. Higher bars indicate that flying is more related to the specific symbol in the graph. Lower bars indicate that flying is less related to the specific symbol in the graph. Specifically, flying dreams have more lucid dreams than 96.4% of dream symbols, more insects than 92.9% of dream symbols, and more natural places than 87.8% of dream symbols. On the other hand, flying dreams have less family than 85.1% of dream symbols, less romantic partners than 84.8% of dream symbols, and less hatred than 83.3% of dream symbols. Notably, dreams of flying are much more related to lucid dreaming than all other dream symbols. Lucid dreams are dreams in which you are aware that you are dreaming. Of course, not all dreams of flying are lucid dreams. But dreams of flying are more related to lucid dreams than 90% of all other dream symbols. So, the next time you dream of flying, see if you can be aware that you are dreaming! Every dream is unique. These are general patterns observed in an analysis of over 200,000 dreams. This analysis is a tool to help you make sense of your dreams. It is best to look at the differences. See how your dream of flying is different than dreams of flying in general.

8.0%

of dreams have flying

How common are flying dreams?

8.0% of dreams have the flying symbol within the dream. That's about 1 out of every 10 dreams. Considering all the dream symbols, it is common.

Identification

How are flying dreams identified?

This symbol is identified by words like levitate, fly, soar, etc. This symbol is part of summary dream symbols verbs and movement.

Most related

What is most related to dreams of flying?

Flying dreams are notable because they have substantially more flies, fighter jets, hummingbirds, Algeria, pilots, Bilbo Baggins, jets, ufos, Superman, helicopters, worm holes than 95% of other dream symbols.

Least related

What symbols least related to dreams of flying?

Flying dreams are notable because they have substantially less Gimli, Fiji, Guatemala, Kuwait, Serbia, Somalia, emaciation, Ron Weasley, abscesses, Cameroon, calluses than 95% of other dream symbols.

Deep dive into flying dreams

Get an overview of characters, emotions, places, events, dream events, and senses in flying dreams.

Who is in dreams of flying?

Who is in dreams of flying?

Dreams of flying are more related to animals, much more related to insects, and more related to fantastic beings than dreams in general. They are less related to unnamed people, less related to strangers, and less related to peers.

more than usual
much more than usual
less than usual
more than usual
less than usual
less than usual
less than usual
less than usual
What are the emotions in dreams of flying?

What are the emotions in dreams of flying?

Flying dreams are less related to happiness, less related to sadness, and less related to grief and sorrow.

less than usual
less than usual
less than usual
less than usual
less than usual
the same as usual
less than usual
less than usual
the same as usual
less than usual
Where do dreams of flying take place?

Where do dreams of flying take place?

Flying dreams are more related to transportation and more related to natural places than dreams in general. They are less related to home, less related to work, and less related to human-made places.

less than usual
less than usual
less than usual
more than usual
more than usual
the same as usual
less than usual
What happens in dreams of flying?

What happens in dreams of flying?

Dreams of flying are more related to disasters than dreams in general. They are less related to friendly acts, less related to sex, and less related to eating and drinking.

the same as usual
less than usual
less than usual
more than usual
less than usual
less than usual
less than usual
How do dreams of flying related to the type of dream it is?

How do dreams of flying related to the type of dream it is?

Dreams of flying are much more related to lucid dreams, more related to recurring dreams, and more related to sleep paralysis than dreams in general. They are less related to bad dreams.

much more than usual
the same as usual
more than usual
more than usual
less than usual
the same as usual
the same as usual
more than usual
the same as usual
How do dreams of flying related the senses?

How do dreams of flying related the senses?

Flying dreams are less related to smelling and less related to taste.

the same as usual
less than usual
less than usual
the same as usual
the same as usual

How can you make sense of flying in dreams?

Flying dreams are common. Among other things flying dreams are associated with lucid dreaming. Do you think this is true for your dream of flying? How might your dream of flying be different?

All dreams have meaning

All dreams have meaning

You can gain insight from thinking about any dream, no matter how strange. Only you, as the dreamer, have final say on what your dream may or may not mean. Each dream is unique.

Look for the differences

Look for the differences

The DreamWell dictionary provides information on how each dream symbol appears in dreams in general. Finding how experience flying in dreams can be a key to understanding its meaning.

Return to the feelings

Return to the feelings

Our emotions in dreams can help us understand its meaning. Pay attention to how you felt in the dream. Pay attention to how you feel about flying in dreams. See how you feel about flying now, in your waking life.

An interpretation of flying dreams

An interpretation of flying dreams

This interpretation is from ""The Dream Interpretation Dictionary: Symbols, Signs, and Meanings" and is provided by J.M. DeBord aka "RadOwl". He is the author of several acclaimed books about dreaming, the host of The Dreams That Shape Us podcast, and is a moderator of r/Dreams, one of the largest dream sharing communities on the internet. Flying is a common dream theme and has a variety of meanings. The most common are related to flying as an expression of “going somewhere” in your life. It expresses confidence and enthusiasm, or just pure happiness. It can show achievement and success. It’s a physical representation of a personal situation. The symbolism of flying depends heavily on whether you fly under your own power or in a plane. Flying under your own power is often associated with ability to “soar” in your personal life and development. These flying dreams are common in people who are discovering their capabilities and developing their skills and intellect. Thoughts are sometimes said to soar, and intellect is associated with air, so flying under your own power can be a graphic way of representing the power of your mind. Flying under your own power is associated with freedom. Like a bird, you are free. You can come and go as you please. The symbolism of flying in a plane is discussed at length in the Airplane entry. But, quickly, the symbolism often relates to getting to a place you want to be in your life—a goal, ambition, aspiration, desire. Flying is associated with “rising above” and gaining a broader perspective. See: Balloons Flying can symbolize progress—personal progress, or just progress in general, such as toward getting a degree or reaching another sort of goal. It can mean finding a way out of a tricky situation. When you fly away it means “goodbye.” It can mean you wish to escape. See: Escaping Flying is used to describe the feeling of being high on drugs, or just “in the zone” where nothing can stop you or hold you down. See: Floating The flip side can be expressed through flying symbolism, too. If you are restricted you can dream about being unable to fly, or about trying to take flight but something stops you or shoots you down. You are not successful. You don’t have freedom. You are unable to rise above. Inability to fly, or hindrance in flight, can symbolize limits that you place on yourself or that are placed on you. It can mean you’re having difficulty “taking off” or launching. For example, a gay teenage female dreams about being trapped in a bird cage while seeing her love interest’s cellphone passing messages between that girl, who is a close friend, and a boy her friend likes. The bird cage symbolizes the dreamer’s sexuality limiting her. She can’t have what she wants, her love interest. See: Bird cages A woman has a recurring dream about flying in which she launches into the air and feels exhilarated. However, how high she can fly is limited, as if she bumps into an invisible ceiling. It’s tempting to interpret this dream as a metaphor for the “glass ceiling,” but it’s actually more personal than that. Really, it’s about accepting her own limits. Flying in this dream symbolizes her personal development. She is finding out that she has high capabilities. She can really soar and be successful. However, she is also finding out she has limits. They’re invisible in the sense that she doesn’t know she’s reached them till she’s actually there. There is a saying, “The higher you fly, the more you must be grounded.” It means that the more success a person has, the more they need to stay in touch with everyday reality—especially important for highly intelligent individuals who might otherwise get lost in their heads. The psyche is a self-regulating and balancing system, and if any one part of it goes too far one direction, its complementary part will bring the person back to earth—sometimes with a rough landing! This female needs to learn how to ground herself more in everyday reality and in her body if she wants to expand her limits. See: Compensation Distance in a dream can refer to emotional or personal distance, and in this sense, flying can be viewed as a means of quickly closing that distance. When traveling long distances, flying is the fastest mode of travel, which can symbolize the fastest means to get to a goal. People who are afraid of flying or have concerns related to taking flights, such as how to handle small children on a plane, can dream about flying in connection with these issues. These are possible topics for dreams to explore through scenes of flying. See also: Planes, Airports, Birds, Bird cages, Compensation, Embarking, Floating, Insects, Journeys, Rockets

Examples of dreams of flying

Reading dreams is one of the best ways to understand dream symbols. Even though the DreamWell Dream Dictionary is based upon data, it is grounded in the experience of reading thousands upon thousands of dreams. We invite you to read examples of flying dreams for yourself. These dreams are actual dreams people have had. As result, they may contain racist, sexist, violent, or otherwise offense language and imagery. This can be true even for flying dreams. Read at your own risk.

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