Dream interpretation is the broader practice of assigning meaning to dreams, drawing on symbolism, cultural tradition, or psychological theory to understand what a dream might represent. It's closely related to dream analysis, though dream interpretation often leans more on established symbol meanings, a specific animal or object appearing in a dream, for example, while dream analysis tends to focus more on a client's personal associations and current life circumstances.

Many symbols carry widely recognized meanings across dream interpretation traditions; water is often associated with emotion, flying with freedom or a desire for escape, though personal context always plays a role in how a specific dream is understood.