Mickey Mouse affair
- noun
- /ˈmɪki maʊs əˈfɛr/
- Informal
:
asunto trivial
- Don't take this project too seriously; it's just a Mickey Mouse affair.
Examples
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He dismissed the scandal as just a Mickey Mouse affair that would soon be forgotten.
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Many employees were frustrated at having to attend such a Mickey Mouse affair during work hours.
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The committee's decisions were viewed as a Mickey Mouse affair by the public.
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The meeting turned out to be a Mickey Mouse affair.
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He dismissed the scandal as just a Mickey Mouse affair that would soon be forgotten.
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Many employees were frustrated at having to attend such a Mickey Mouse affair during work hours.
-
Don't take this project too seriously; it's just a Mickey Mouse affair.
Synonyms
6
5.4
A small detail that does not matter
1
5.9
An event people expected to be important but that was disappointing
1
4.0
A small thing that is not important
A small unimportant task done badly, like filing papers
How Important
Surface Forms
Morphology
Mickey + Mouse + affair
The meaning 'trivial, unimportant' relies on the idiomatic use of the proper name 'Mickey Mouse' (a cultural reference) rather than the literal meanings of 'Mickey' + 'mouse' + 'affair'. A B1 learner who only knows the constituent words is unlikely to infer this evaluative sense without prior cultural/idiomatic knowledge, so the phrase is opaque.
Etymology
Mickey Mouse affair comes from the famous cartoon character Mickey Mouse, who is seen as small, playful, and for children. One popular story says people began using his name to call things childish or silly, so a Mickey Mouse affair means an event that is 'trivial' or 'not serious'.