mind's eye

• (UK, US) IPA^(key): /ˈmaɪndz ˌaɪ/

mind's eye (plural mind's eyes)

1. The ability to picture an image mentally through imagination.

   I'm sure the image I had in my mind's eye wasn't a thing like it really looked.

   • 1852, Alfred (King of England), The whole works of King Alfred the Great:

     He who would see it with his mind's eye must begin by very little, and then by little and little climb nigher and nigher, and stepmeal, as if he were climbing on a ladder, and would be up on some sea'cliff; […]

   • 1927, M[ohandas] K[aramchand] Gandhi, chapter 3, in Mahadev Desai, transl., The Story of My Experiments with Truth: Translated from the Original in Gujarati, volume I, Ahmedabad, Gujarat: Navajivan Press, →OCLC:

     My father put on a brave face in spite of his injuries, and took full part in the wedding. As I think of it, I can even today call before my mind's eye the places where he sat as he went through the different details of the ceremony. Little did I dream then that one day I should severely criticize my father for having married me as a child.

   • 2021 June 8, Carl Zimmer, “Many People Have a Vivid ‘Mind’s Eye,’ While Others Have None at All”, in The New York Times‎, →ISSN:

     The study suggests that the mind’s eye acts as an emotional amplifier, strengthening both the positive and negative feelings produced by our experiences.

• mind's ear