pipe-dream

pipe-dream — noun

1. an unrealistic hope, plan, promise, or story that sounds attractive — winning th

1.nounC1
Definition

an unrealistic hope, plan, promise, or story that sounds attractive — winning the lottery, retiring to a private island, or guaranteed riches from a tiny investment — but stands almost no chance of coming true.

Example

Marcus knows that opening a bakery in Paris is just a pipe dream on his current salary.

[something] is just a pipe dream

Lina once shared her pipe dream of sailing alone around the world before turning thirty.

a pipe dream of [doing something]

Common collocations
  • just a pipe dream
  • only a pipe dream
  • remain a pipe dream
  • dismiss something as a pipe dream
  • a pipe dream of doing something
  • sell someone a pipe dream
  • spin a pipe dream
  • peddle a pipe dream
Synonyms
  • fantasy

    any imagined scene; less focused on a plan that has been ruled out

  • daydream

    a passing pleasant thought; not as final or as clearly impossible

  • fool's errand

    stresses the wasted effort of trying, not the hope itself

  • castle in the air

    more literary; same idea of a plan with no real foundation

  • tall tale

    covers the 'sold to others' frame: an exaggerated story told for effect

Antonyms

Grammar Patterns

a pipe dream

[something] is (just / only) a pipe dream

a pipe dream of [doing something]

sell / spin / peddle someone a pipe dream

Usage Note

Often paired with 'just', 'only', 'merely', or 'nothing but' to stress that the hope will not happen. Frequently appears as the noun complement after 'is' or 'remains'. When the hope is being pushed onto a listener by someone else (a salesperson, politician, or schemer), the verbs 'sell', 'spin', and 'peddle' are common — same lexical sense, just a register shift toward criticism of the speaker.

Common Mistakes

I pipe-dreamed about that house for years.
Owning that house was a pipe dream of mine for years.
pipe dream is a noun, not a verb.
The salesman told us a pipe dream story.
The salesman sold us a pipe dream.
pipe dream stands as the noun itself, not as a modifier before another noun.

Word family

  • pipe dream
    nounC1
  • pipe-dreamer
    noun

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

All four words name something pleasant that lives mostly in the imagination, but each carries a different judgement. A pipe dream is the strongest: the speaker has already decided the plan cannot really happen, and often uses 'just' or 'only' to make that clear; it also covers stories or promises pushed at others, as in 'selling a pipe dream'. A fantasy is broader — any imagined scene, from a happy holiday to a darker wish — and does not always carry the verdict 'impossible'. A daydream is the gentlest: a short, pleasant thought during a quiet moment, with no claim about whether it could ever come true. A castle in the air is more literary and old-fashioned, painting a plan that is grand but without any real foundation. So a child has a daydream about flying; a teenager builds castles in the air about fame; an adult finally calls early retirement on a small salary a pipe dream.

pipe dreamfantasy ↗daydream ↗castle in the air

Common collocations

Nouns

  • a pipe dream of retirement
  • a pipe dream of fame
  • a pipe dream of riches

Adverbs

Phrases

  • just a pipe dream
  • remain a pipe dream
  • nothing but a pipe dream
  • dismiss as a pipe dream
  • sell someone a pipe dream
  • spin a pipe dream
  • peddle a pipe dream

Prepositions

  • of (a pipe dream of doing something)

Etymology

English (American)

The expression appeared in American English in the late 1800s and originally referred to the strange, vivid visions that someone had while smoking opium through a pipe. Because those visions were beautiful but bore no relation to real life, English speakers soon used 'pipe dream' for any hope or plan that sounded lovely but had almost no chance of coming true. The opium link faded from everyday awareness, and today most speakers use the phrase without thinking of its drug-related origin.