Why Dream Dictionaries Don’t Work

Let's talk today about dream dictionaries which I think they’re useless. I’ll explain why, and maybe by the end you’ll agree with me or at least see your own dreams in a different way.

Now, don’t get me wrong. I understand why people love them. You wake up from some weird dream and the first thing you want to do is figure out what it means. So you grab your phone, Google it, and you land on some website that tells you it’s a sign of “emotional overload” or “hidden desires.”

But here’s the problem: none of these explanations actually know you. Dreams don’t work like that.

Dream dictionaries feel easy. They give you a neat answer, even if it’s vague.

But here’s the truth dreams aren’t one-size-fits-all and the way my subconscious communicates with me is personal.

If you’re actually serious about understanding your dreams you need a dream journal.

That’s it. A notebook. A file on your phone. A pile of sticky notes if that’s all you’ve got. Just write them down.

Because here’s what happens when you keep a dream journal: you start to notice patterns that belong to you. You realize, “Oh, every time I dream of food, something good happens in real life.” Or, “When I dream I’m late, something usually falls through.”

And once you start catching these patterns, you’re basically building your own dream dictionary. The only one that actually works for you.

Let me give you a personal example. Whenever I have an important interview, sometimes the night before I dream about food, it may be just some soup, or a dessert.

Now, if you look this up in a dream dictionary, it’ll say something like “food represents nourishment, maybe you’re hungry for knowledge, maybe it’s about self-care.” All very poetic, but completely wrong for me.

Because in my case, food in dreams means I’m about to succeed.

And my personal “failure” dream sign is always the same: being late. Whenever I dream of rushing and not making it on time, something in real life usually doesn’t work out.

Here’s an example. Years ago, I went through a long, complicated series of interviews for a job. And almost every night during that process, I kept dreaming that I was late. Based on my own dream patterns, I already knew this probably wasn’t going to happen.

But then something strange happened. They emailed me, scheduled one last meeting, and even told me I got the job. I was so confused why would my subconscious keep showing me lateness if I actually succeeded?

Well, the answer came after that final meeting. The offer they gave me was way lower than what we had originally discussed, even less than what I was already earning. In the end, I turned it down. So, in a way, my dream sign was right all along it wasn’t a success for me, even though on the surface it looked like it.

No dream dictionary would ever tell me that. I had to figure it out myself by writing things down and paying attention.

Let’s take some of the most common “dream symbols.”

• Teeth falling out. According to the internet, it means fear of aging, insecurity, loss of control. A few years back, I actually dreamed one night that my teeth were falling out. And the very next day, one of my teeth literally broke, and I had to rush to the dentist.

• Snakes. In Western culture, snakes often symbolize danger. But in many spiritual traditions, snakes represent energy, healing, or transformation. Same dream, completely different meaning depending on your background.

• Running. Some sources say it means you’re avoiding something. Or maybe you just watched a horror movie before bed.

• Dreaming of someone who’s passed away is often explained as a sign of grief. But for me, whenever I dream of my grandmother, it’s actually a good sign I know I’m about to have a really happy period. She passed away when I was very young, so I don’t feel grief connected to her anymore. And in Romania, at least in my family, we have a custom of lighting a candle and giving food away to honor and celebrate a relative who has died. So in my dreams, she doesn’t represent sadness she’s more like a symbol of joy and blessing.

  
  

This is why I say dream dictionaries are useless, they’re too generic. They take symbols out of context and pretend the meaning is universal, when in reality it depends on your culture, your memories, your personal experiences.

Think about it: your subconscious has lived your entire life with you. It knows your childhood, your fears, your inside jokes and so on.

So if dream dictionaries don’t work, what does? Here’s how I do it.

1. Write it down. Even if you only remember one scene or one image, get it on paper. Dreams fade fast.

2. Note how you felt. The emotions are often the most important clue. Did you wake up scared, relieved, excited, annoyed?

3. Look for patterns. Over time, you’ll see symbols that keep showing up. That’s how I figured out food equals success, being late equals failure.

4. Check your daily life. Sometimes dreams are just your brain recycling what you did that day. You watched a show with a chase scene, so you dream of running. No deeper meaning required.

5. Renter your dream to understand the symbolism or what it means. One of the best techniques I’ve picked up is what Robert Moss calls re-entering your dream to really understand the symbolism. Here’s how it works.

   First, you need the dream written down with as many details as you can remember the setting, the people, the little things that stood out. Then, when you’re calm and comfortable, take a few deep breaths, close your eyes, and with your imagination, step back into that dream.

   Personally, I like to picture a big door. I imagine opening it and walking straight into the dream world. From there, I just observe look around again, notice details I might have missed. If someone from the dream shows up, I’ll even ask them directly, “Why are you here? What message are you bringing me?”

   When I finish this little mental journey, I write down everything that came up. Often, this gives me a much clearer idea of what the dream was trying to tell me, and what it means for me personally.

   
   

At the end of the day, dreams are deeply personal. They’re not just random images thrown together, and they’re definitely not something that can be fully explained by a dictionary that gives the same meaning to everyone.

That’s why keeping a dream journal is so important. Over time, you’ll start to see your own unique patterns. You’ll notice that a certain symbol always shows up when you’re about to succeed, or another one appears when something’s not quite right. Those are your dream signs. They’re like your mind’s private code.

And once you understand them, dreams stop being confusing or frustrating. They actually become useful. They can warn you, encourage you, celebrate with you, or even guide you toward things you might not have noticed while awake.

If you want to go deeper, you can try re-entering your dreams, as I mentioned earlier. Step back into that dream with your imagination, ask questions, and pay attention to what shows up. Sometimes the answer is right there if you’re willing to look for it.

So next time you wake up from something strange, don’t just search it online. Open your journal, pay attention, and listen. That’s where the real meaning is.