impossible dream
4
6.8
- noun
:
sueño imposible
- For some, winning the lottery seems like an impossible dream that will never become reality.
Dream the impossible dream and the world will not grind you under.
- Dream the impossible dream and the world will not grind you under.
- For a young mechanical engineer on the Mars Science Laboratory team, it was an impossible dream come true.
- And maybe in the most impossible dream, this will be the event that finally changes things.
Examples
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I just don't want to see her heart get broken when this impossible dream of hers doesn't come true.
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Without this commitment, global food security is an impossible dream.
Academic text (1995) -
And maybe in the most impossible dream, this will be the event that finally changes things.
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A few years ago, renewable energy such as solar power and wind power was an impossible dream for the average person.
Blog text (17) -
I want to continue pursuing seemingly impossible dreams.
Blog text (7) -
And I wish that peace didn't seem like such an impossible dream sometimes...
Blog text (1) -
If they would rather spend it on an impossible dream than on food, clothing, housing, or recreation, their choice should be respected.
Academic text (2008) -
For a young mechanical engineer on the Mars Science Laboratory team, it was an impossible dream come true.
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In these sacred places, participants' emotions are heightened, orators' tongues are loosened, and citizens dream impossible dreams.
Academic text (2018) -
Many people believe that world peace is an impossible dream, but we should keep trying.
Synonyms
37
5.3
A situation in which something cannot happen
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
1
8.2
An idea or plan that is unrealistic and unlikely to happen
A hope that seems unlikely to come true
How Realistic
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly compositional: 'impossible' (cannot be accomplished) modifies 'dream' (an aspiration), yielding an aspiration that cannot be achieved. This straightforward semantic combination follows common patterns across languages, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will readily infer the intended meaning.
Etymology
Impossible dream creates the image of someone trying to reach a bright star on a very tall ladder but never being able to get it. So it came to mean a hope or goal that is 'unattainable' or 'cannot be achieved'.