Standard Lemma guide

pipe-dream

verb · 1 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Received-Pronunciation: /ˈpaɪpdriːm/
  • General-American: /ˈpaɪpˌdrim/
  • Australia: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.

1

verb

Meaning 1

To have a desire or idea which is unlikely to materialize, or to imagine a plan which is unlikely to work; to dream of a near impossibility.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: intransitive

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

From pipe dream (noun).

Across languages

Translations

2 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Finnish: nähdä toiveunta — to have a desire or idea which is unlikely to materialize, or to imagine a plan which is unlikely to work
  • Finnish: uneksia — to have a desire or idea which is unlikely to materialize, or to imagine a plan which is unlikely to work