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pie in the sky
Slang Dictionary

pie in the sky definition


  1. n.
    a reward; a special heavenly reward. : If he didn't hope for some heavenly pie in the sky, he would probably be a real crook.
  2. mod.
    having to do with a hope for a special reward. (This is hyphenated before a nominal.) : Get rid of your pie-in-the-sky ideas!
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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American Heritage
Idioms & Phrases

pie in the sky

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."

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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