View synonyms for pie in the sky

pie in the sky

noun

pie ¹( def 8 ).

pie in the sky

A preposterously optimistic goal: “The candidate says we can balance the budget by next year, but I think that's pie in the sky.”

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Word History and Origins

Origin of pie in the sky¹

An Americanism dating back to 1910–15

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Idioms and Phrases

An empty wish or promise, as in His dream of being hired as a sports editor proved to be pie in the sky . This expression was first recorded in 1911 in a rallying song of a union, the International Workers of the World (or “Wobblies”): “Work and pray, live on hay, you'll get pie in the sky when you die.”

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Example Sentences

“Your EPA is targeting Kentucky coal with pie-in-the-sky regulations,” she says in a message to the president.

From The Daily Beast

I've been through one renovation too many know that this two-year time frame for completion is pie-in-the-sky malarkey.

From The Daily Beast

We were called communists, imperialists, fascists, and (our favorite) "pie-in-the-sky open-border elitists."

From The Daily Beast

Word of the Day

April 19, 2024tortuous

[tawr-choo-uhs ]

Meaning and examples

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

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