imago
|i-ma-go|
🇺🇸
/ɪˈmeɪɡoʊ/
🇬🇧
/ɪˈmeɪɡəʊ/
image; final form
Etymology
'imago' originates from Latin, specifically the word 'imāgō', where 'imāgō' meant 'image, likeness, statue, or representation'.
'imago' was used in Classical Latin as 'imāgō', passed into Medieval and Modern Latin as 'imago' (and into scientific New Latin), and was borrowed into English with specialized senses (notably in entomology and psychology) as 'imago'.
Initially, it meant 'image, likeness, or representation', but over time it developed specialized senses: in biology as 'the final adult form' and in psychology as an 'internalized mental image'.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
in entomology, the adult, sexually mature stage of an insect after metamorphosis (the final form following larva/pupa stages).
The butterfly emerged from the chrysalis and became an imago ready to mate.
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Noun 2
in psychology and psychoanalysis, an internalized idealized image of a significant person (often a parent) that influences a person's expectations and behavior in relationships.
Her imago of a perfect mother shaped how she picked partners throughout her life.
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Noun 3
a literary or figurative use: an idealized or fixed image, representation, or symbol of a person or thing.
The poet used the imago of the city at dawn as a recurring symbol of renewal.
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Last updated: 2025/08/26 13:17