What are the meanings of some of the symbols used in dreams?

Answer 1

While many of the following symbols are sometimes portrayed literally in dreams, they often have figurative meanings too:

Baldness: Hair loss can represent a fear of cancer or humiliation. It can also represent shame.

Children: Seeing a child may represent your inner child, or it could represent a treasured time in your life.

Constipation: Likely, you need to use the toilet, but you know you cannot do so in the bed, so the dream is an attempt to get your attention so you can relieve yourself.

Death: It depends on who is dead. If the person is deceased in real life, then you could still be grieving or have unresolved issues with this person.

Electrical outlets: Could represent power, energy, work (if you are an electrician), or a hobby if you are into electronics.

Fecal matter: Dreams about bodily waste often indicate a need to use the toilet. However, it could represent other things like disrespect (if you do it near food), bitter experiences or consequences of your actions (particularly if you are eating it), or foolishness (if an animal eats it).

Fly Larvae (maggots): This can represent death, decay, and rotting things. It could also represent being hard on one's luck, such as having to eat food containing these.

Grain / Seeds: This could represent masculinity. "Seed" can be symbolic for sperm cells. Then again, it could represent a chance or opportunity.

Hunger: It could mean you are hungry at the time of the dream, or it could relate to a deep yearning in your life.

Inability to speak: This is usually related to feelings of powerlessness or a loss of control. A person's "voice" is their authority and ability to make decisions. Children with domineering parents might have recurring dreams where they are unable to speak. Of course, this could be a symptom of "sleep paralysis." That is a normal condition where you are unable to speak or move your limbs while dreaming.

Murder: Unless you are in danger in real life or you recently witnessed or discussed a murder, then this often relates to fear or guilt. If you hate someone, you may be convinced they hate you back, and killing is the ultimate expression of hatred.

Police: This could refer to fear or guilt.

Pregnancy: While this can be about literal pregnancy, it often refers to ideas, projects, hopes, or a new start in life.

Rape: Unless you fear being raped or have done it, the dream is likely about other things done to you without your consent.

Roads, Highways, and Public Transportation: These things can represent the journey through life. Getting onto a smaller road can represent taking the "road less traveled" through life, and could represent a religion or an alternative lifestyle. Getting back to a main road can represent changing your mind. Being on a bicycle as opposed to other vehicles might represent independence or loneliness.

Sex: This can symbolize any relationship and may not literally mean sex. So a dream about incest might not really be about incest, but of kinship or love.

Shoes and/or feet: These may represent your "walk" through life or your lifestyle. Dreaming of only one shoe on could represent unfinished business, particularly if the subject represents a deceased person.

Snakes: Snakes can represent sexuality, healing, or repulsive things. Two intertwined snakes could represent modern medicine, since they are part of the caduceus symbol (two snakes on a winged staff). Some may use snakes as a negative metaphor for the legal profession.

Soil: This could represent female fertility or opportunity in general.

Suicide: Unless you are depressed in real life, this could mean you are making an unpopular change in your life or doing something that you fear could destroy your life.

Toilets: Unless the dream is about your life going down the toilet or about a fear of using public restrooms, it is likely triggered by the need to urinate or defecate, and you should try to wake up and go to the toilet.

Urine: Dreaming about urine or the fear of wetting oneself may mean that you have to urinate in real life.

Water: Bodies of water can represent many things such as life, leaving danger by launching into the unknown, obstacles in life, etc. Swimming may represent freedom, while drowning can represent terror, obstacles, or "getting in over one's head."

Answer 2

Some symbols mean some things. Other symbols mean other things.