head-in-the-sand

adjective

ˈhed-in-ṯẖə-ˈsand 

: unwilling to recognize or acknowledge a problem or situation

the government's usual head-in-the-sand response

Examples of head-in-the-sand in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Probably a little more than the head-in-the-sand Democrats who cheer on her every media appearance might believe, but also not all that much more. —Jay Caspian Kang, The New Yorker, 1 Nov. 2024

What is clear, though, is that the head-in-the-sand approach used by many current founders isn’t a lasting solution. —Byryan Hogg, Fortune Europe, 30 Sep. 2024

Considering that our organizations—and society at large—are aging at an accelerated pace, adopting a head-in-the-sand approach will prove increasingly detrimental. —Dan Pontefract, Forbes, 28 Sep. 2024

But to say Starship will not be a game-changer represents the same head-in-the-sand attitude displayed by Bowles a decade ago with his jokes about not waking the deluded dreamers up. —Eric Berger, Ars Technica, 26 June 2024

Climate change has changed that — no matter what the head-in-the-sand types say. —Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 22 June 2024

Of course, sooner or later, these head-in-the-sand elites must face the reality that China’s rise is ending, especially as the post-investment-binge deflationary spiral begins to play out. —Daniel Lynch, Foreign Affairs, 11 Jan. 2016

Rather than prop up her parents as easy targets, Bartlett lays bare their contradictory humanity over a 44-year journey from wide-eyed idealism to head-in-the-sand egotism. —Thomas Floyd, Washington Post, 15 Jan. 2024

Moran rejects the climate-change denialism that many head-in-the-sand Republicans embrace. —Mark Z. Barabak, Los Angeles Times, 13 June 2023

Word History

First Known Use

1970, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for head-in-the-sand

• analysand
• misunderstand
• ampersand
• beforehand
• behindhand
• bottomland
• contraband
• countermand
• dixieland
• fairyland
• fatherland
• firebrand