pie in the sky
In real, traceable use. Part of the curated seed collection; community review is coming.
Meaning · English
Unlikely to be realized.
Where it’s used:
Used
Widespread English
Examples
a crazy pie in the sky idea dreamt up over a few beers finally became a reality today and a new world record.
Describing a bypass as ‘ pie in the sky’ the spokesman said it would take years to achieve while action was needed now.
British National Corpus sentence via the MAGPIE corpus (CC BY 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-30)
Sources & notes
Listed in Wiktionary’s “English idioms” category (retrieved 2026-07-29); definition pending editorial review. Figurative class: Metaphor (PIE-English corpus, CC BY 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-31).
Common questions
What does “pie in the sky” mean?
Unlikely to be realized.
Is “pie in the sky” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.