Nefelibata
/ˌnɛfəlɪˈbɑːtə/noun
A person who lives in a world of imagination or impractical ideas.
Did you know?The word comes from Greek imagery of walking among clouds, turning imaginative independence into something almost celestial rather than merely impractical.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*nébʰos
“Cloud or mist; the ancient root behind several later cloud words.”
Ancient Greek
Greek
νεφέλη (nephélē)
“Cloud.”
Ancient Greek
Greek
νεφελοβάτης (nephelobátēs)
“Cloud-walker; literally one who treads or walks among clouds.”
19th Century
Portuguese
nefelibata
“A dreamer or impractical idealist; literally, a cloud-walker.”
Modern English
English
nefelibata
“A person who lives in an imaginative or idealistic world.”