flight of fancy
7
7.4
- noun
- /flaɪt əv ˈfænsi/
- Informal
:
vuelo de fantasía
- During the meeting, he suggested a wild idea, but the manager dismissed it as just a flight of fancy.
- a little flight of fancy
- such a flight of fancy
- just flights of fancy
But the, the, the English speaking world has always been very empirical and not really given to tremendous flights of fancy.
- But the, the, the English speaking world has always been very empirical and not really given to tremendous flights of fancy.
Examples
-
Her plan to travel to Mars for vacation was clearly a flight of fancy that no one took seriously.
-
I don't think the lady can quite describe herself as ordinary after that little flight of fancy.
-
I found out that you were the cold, scientific type, not given to flights of fancy.
-
There will be some more flights of fancy in the future, you can be pretty sure.
Blog text (14) -
I'm told that my flights of fancy are not becoming of a lady.
-
She had no more time for these flights of fancy.
Fiction book (1992) -
We'll have to excuse Walter, he's given to flights of fancy.
-
No flights of fancy for Kayleen, no romantic dreams or foolish choices.
Fiction book (2000) -
At such moments, flights of fancy are inevitable for the one who arrives to gaze upon this scene.
Fiction book (2002) -
There were no flights of fancy, no children imagining monsters or wonderful creatures, no adults telling stories.
Fiction book (1995)
Synonyms
82
6.9
A belief that is not realistic about yourself or the future
23
6.8
A hope or plan that is not likely to happen
22
7.7
An idea or hope that seems real but is not possible
10
7.5
An idea or plan that is unlikely to happen
8
7.2
A false idea that people think is true
1
8.2
An idea or plan that is unrealistic and unlikely to happen
An idea that is strange and unlikely to work
An idea that seems a little crazy
A very strange thought or plan that seems extreme
A silly, impractical thought or suggestion
A silly idea that shows little thought
How Imaginative
Surface Forms
Morphology
The noun combines 'flight' (movement or a figurative escape) with 'fancy' (imagination), so the sense 'a brief escape into imagination' or an imaginative but impractical idea is directly inferable from the parts. The metaphorical use of 'flight' for a mental escape is common cross-linguistically, making this meaning accessible to a B1 learner who knows both constituents.
Etymology
Flight of fancy comes from the image of a sudden flight, like an idea taking off quickly like a bird, and fancy meaning imagination. So, it describes an idea that is 'imaginative but unlikely to be true'.