悪夢

1. Origins, structure, and basic meaning

• Structure: 悪夢 is read as あくむ and is a noun for a frightening dream or, figuratively, an extremely distressing real experience.
• Basic usage: Use 悪夢を見る for a dream during sleep and 人々にとって悪夢だった for a situation experienced as a nightmare.

2. Common pitfalls and similar expressions

• Literal and figurative senses
  • The pursuit dream is literal, while the days of turmoil are compared to a nightmare and are not an actual dream.
• Viewpoint with にとって
  • 町の人々にとって identifies the people from whose perspective the situation felt nightmarish.