feather-brain idea
- noun
- Archaic
:
idea descabellada
- That was a feather-brain idea to suggest we go skydiving without training!
Examples
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His feather-brain idea was quickly dismissed by the team.
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She came up with another feather-brain idea that made everyone laugh.
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Every time we try to plan something, he suggests some feather-brain idea.
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She often comes up with feather-brain ideas that make everyone laugh.
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Every time we try to plan something, he suggests some feather-brain idea that makes no sense.
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His feather-brain idea about starting a circus in our backyard was quickly dismissed.
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She came up with another feather-brain idea that made everyone roll their eyes.
Synonyms
7
7.4
An imaginative idea that is unlikely to be true or useful
A foolish idea that probably will not work
Ideas that are not true and make no sense
A small, unimportant idea that has no practical use
A silly, impractical thought or suggestion
A silly, creative idea that would not work in real life
How Silly
Surface Forms
Morphology
feather-brain + idea
The meaning 'a silly or foolish thought' can be partially inferred from 'feather' (light, insubstantial) plus 'brain' (mind) so a learner may guess it denotes a lightweight or frivolous mental state. However, the metaphorical fusion is creative and not a fully standard compositional pattern (and 'feather-brain' is less common than equivalents like 'bird‑brained'), so a B1 learner who knows the words but hasn't seen the phrase may not reliably derive the exact meaning.
Etymology
The phrase feather-brain idea may come from the image of a head filled with feathers instead of a proper brain, so the thoughts feel light and easily blown away. That's why it means 'a silly or foolish thought'.