to ask for the moon
1
7.6
- idiom
- Informal
:
pedir lo imposible
- Jays have every right to ask for the moon, but they won't get it from the Yankees... and it doesn't look like the Jays are in the mood to negotiate.
Examples
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Don't let's ask for the moon.
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I don't think I'm asking for the moon here.
Blog text (23) -
Might as well ask for the moon.
Fiction book (1992) -
I'm not asking for the moon.
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They say that l am asking... for the moon
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Don't ask for the moon, we have the stars.
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Doesn't keep asking for the moon.
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Leon said at one point that the government, in its recommendation for probation, was "asking for the moon."
Blog text (30) -
Oh, Jerry, don't let's ask for the moon.
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Don't ask for the moon; instead, focus on what is achievable.
Synonyms
To want something that is impossible or not realistic
How Reasonable
Surface Forms
Morphology
The expression uses transparent words but relies on a metaphorical reading of 'moon' as an unattainable object, so its idiomatic sense ('request something impossible or unreasonable') is not strictly compositional. Because similar metaphors exist in many languages (e.g. Spanish pedir la luna, French demander la lune), learners who know the words can often infer the intended hyperbole, but it still requires metaphorical interpretation rather than direct composition.
Etymology
Ask for the moon comes from the picture of someone asking you to hand over the moon, a bright thing you cannot really give. So it means 'to ask for something impossible or unreasonable'.