seeing things

see things

To see visual hallucinations or imagine things that are not really there. There's no dog in the back yard—you're seeing things. I could have sworn the contract said we were entitled to a lower price, but I must have been seeing things.
See also: see, thing
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

seeing things

imagining that one sees someone or something that is not there. Lisa says that she saw a ghost, but she was just seeing things. I thought I was seeing things when Bill walked into the room. Someone had told me he was dead.
See also: seeing, thing
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs.

seeing things

Experiencing hallucinations or delusions, as in I thought I saw my father, but I must have been seeing things; he died twenty years ago . [First half of 1900s]
See also: seeing, thing
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
See also:
  • see things
  • see/hear things
  • step things up
  • being
  • a ton of (people or things)
  • that's (just) how it goes
  • that's (just) the way it goes
  • that's (just) the way it is
  • that's (just) the way it plays
  • the way it plays
References in classic literature
He yearned above all things for experience and felt himself ridiculous because at his age he had not enjoyed that which all fiction taught him was the most important thing in life; but he had the unfortunate gift of seeing things as they were, and the reality which was offered him differed too terribly from the ideal of his dreams.
This was his acknowledgment of the impossibility of changing a man's convictions by words, and his recognition of the possibility of everyone thinking, feeling, and seeing things each from his own point of view.
I do hope you feel the weight of the responsibility you have taken upon yourself, Alec," she said, with a certain grim sort of satisfaction at seeing things go wrong.
"Meditate and consider as much as you like," replied Porthos, who was now quite out of humor at seeing things take this turn.
I didn't like the idea of him seeing things like that--it was real uncanny.
He was quick at seeing things. I appeared to produce almost the same impression on him which I had produced on the cabman.
You would think that those men had an astonishing talent for seeing things that had already passed away.
'Seeing things from one perspective, let's say negative side a picture for example' will make believe on the negative side of the picture of the story, and at the event the speakers from the industry will discuss the importance of changing people's way of seeing things and reshaping their perceptions, and how it is done,' said UIT Director Dr Zahir Ali Syed.
Hipp and charmingly illustrated by Hilary Ann Love Glass, "A Different Kind of Safari" is a heartwarming and powerful picture book for children 6 to 10 that illustrates how self-awareness, and courage help a young boy named Raymond learn the difference between seeing things as they appear to be and seeing things as they are.
19, 2014, HBO aired True Detective Season 1 Episode 2 Seeing Things in which actress Alexandra Daddario shocked the viewers when she went completely nude in a scene with actor Woody Harrelson.
I opened the seat lid and thought I was seeing things. Two big eyes were looking up at me!
He says: "Sometimes, between the ages of one to four, you hear these great stories of kids seeing things that aren't there.
If we are to have any chance of prisoners being rehabilitated, then they need to be offered hope and a new way of seeing things. Books are part of that.
Denise Poole, 52, said that she thought she was seeing things after spotting the flying object in her daily weather check of her home island of Guernsey.
What we really wanted was to offer an experience in holographic technology that has never been witnessed before" says Shahzeb Mirza one of the co-founders of Magision the company that has created the product.He also said that they believe things should be interactive to enable the consumer to engage with the product.For Mirza and his team offering an experience of seeing things in thin air while they are not physically present was not enough.