pipe dream
A desire or idea which is unlikely to materialize, or a plan which is unlikely to workA desire or idea which is unlikely to materialize, or a plan which is unlikely to work; a near impossibility.
» It's a pipe dream.
Это "мыльный пузырь".
Это несбыточная мечта.
Це нездійсненна мрія.
Meaning
1 senses(idiomatic)A desire or idea which is unlikely to materialize, or a plan which is unlikely to work; a near impossibility.
I think that his plan to become a professional athlete is a pipe dream and that he should stay in school.
Luftschloss, Schnapsidee, Wunschtraum
- a fantastic but vain hope (from fantasies induced by the opium pipe)
Examples
8 sentencesIt's a pipe dream.
Це нездійсненна мрія. — deniko
ruЭто "мыльный пузырь". — marafon
That's nothing but a pipe dream.
It isn't a pipe dream.
It's not a pipe dream.
Don't waste your time on that pipe dream.
Не марнуй час на цей замок із піску. — deniko
Translations
6 languagesBy meaning 1
Origin
From pipe + dream, referring to the fantasies experienced when smoking an opium pipe. CompFrom pipe + dream, referring to the fantasies experienced when smoking an opium pipe. Compare Old English pīpdrēam (“the sound or music of a pipe”), which is formed identically but has a different meaning.
Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Forms
plural: pipe dreamsSynonyms
3 synonyms- a fantastic but vain hope (from fantasies induced by the opium pipe):dream