What does it mean to dream about rat?
A rat tends to point to something gnawing at you, a worry, a betrayal, or a feeling of being unclean, though it can also mean sheer resourcefulness.
Four ways to read it
Each reading below comes from a named tradition and a cited source, so you can see where it came from and decide what fits your dream.
Freud
Freud's famous Rat Man case tied rats to guilt, money, and anxious, intrusive thoughts. The rat often stands for a fear or shame the dreamer cannot quiet.
After Freud, The Interpretation of Dreams (Brill trans., 1913), public domain.Jung
Jung would point to the shadow and the neglected, instinctual parts that thrive in the dark. The rat asks what has been left to fester out of sight.
Jungian concept (our summary).Modern
Continuity links rats to waking unease about health, trust, or a problem multiplying. Disgust at the rat marks where the feeling sits.
Continuity hypothesis (our summary).Mythological
Reviled as plague-bringers in the West yet honoured as the clever mount of Ganesha in India and the first sign of the Chinese zodiac, the rat is both pest and survivor.
Rosmerta Publishing editorial synthesis (after Brewer).