as in dream
a conception or image created by the imagination and having no objective reality
opening our own restaurant has long been a pipe dream
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Recent Examples of pipe dream
Mike Kaye: Penn State defensive end Abdul Carter and Colorado cornerback/wide receiver Travis Hunter feel like pipe dreams at No. 8 at this stage in the draft process.
—
Mike Kaye, Charlotte Observer, 12 Feb. 2025
When it was established in 2004, American Prairie Reserve—a private, nonprofit effort to create the largest wildlife reserve in the continental U.S. at three million acres—seemed like nothing more than a pipe dream.
—Ryan Krogh, Outside Online, 24 Jan. 2025
But while there’s lottery dollars for the top earners, making a living off of writing for TV and films is, for many, a pipe dream.
—Ethan Millman, Rolling Stone, 16 Jan. 2025
Leadership development professionals face an uphill battle: coaching is expensive, training doesn’t always translate to behavior change, and establishing a culture of learning can feel like a pipe dream.
—Kevin Kruse, Forbes, 27 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for pipe dream
Mike Kaye, Charlotte Observer, 12 Feb. 2025
When it was established in 2004, American Prairie Reserve—a private, nonprofit effort to create the largest wildlife reserve in the continental U.S. at three million acres—seemed like nothing more than a pipe dream.
—Ryan Krogh, Outside Online, 24 Jan. 2025
But while there’s lottery dollars for the top earners, making a living off of writing for TV and films is, for many, a pipe dream.
—Ethan Millman, Rolling Stone, 16 Jan. 2025
Leadership development professionals face an uphill battle: coaching is expensive, training doesn’t always translate to behavior change, and establishing a culture of learning can feel like a pipe dream.
—Kevin Kruse, Forbes, 27 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for pipe dream
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pipe dream
Noun
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Getting a glimpse into Garten’s life story is fascinating, and her cheerful demeanor and can-do attitude will galvanize you to chase your dreams.—
Meg Zukin,
Los Angeles Times,
22 Mar. 2025
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Still shopping around for the house of your dreams?—
Merrell Readman,
Travel + Leisure,
22 Mar. 2025
Noun
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The wide front porch gives the illusion that the open-plan living and kitchen area extends past the exterior walls, through the (optional) all-glass double doors to the great outdoors.—
Olivia Young,
Travel + Leisure,
15 Mar. 2025
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The actress added square-toe boots and wore her blonde hair in a slicked style. 12 of 18 Alessandra Ambrosio For the Balenciaga Paris Fashion Week show, Alessandra Ambrosio opted for a navy blue sweater paired with illusion lingerie on the bottom.—
Catherine Santino,
People.com,
11 Mar. 2025
Noun
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The entries are a mixture of sense memory, adolescent embarrassment, nostalgic fashions and foods, daydreams, and anything else that falls through the sieve of Brainard’s disarmingly casual syntax.—
David S. Wallace,
The New Yorker,
19 Mar. 2025
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Panda Bear: Sinister Grift [Domino] Noah Lennox brings the sunshine—and, for the first time on a Panda Bear album, nearly all of his Animal Collective bandmates—on Sinister Grift, an album of spongy psychedelic daydreams and melodies that yearn and enchant.—
Madison Bloom,
Pitchfork,
28 Feb. 2025
Noun
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Surely Shirley reside in a breezy fantasy, one unsullied by grit or grime, one that wears its sweet disposition as a point of pride.—
Stephen Thomas Erlewine,
Rolling Stone,
13 Mar. 2025
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Its packaging, a jewel-like blue bottle engraved with a golden lotus, looks like it was plucked from a fantasy apothecary in the night sky.—
Jenny Berg,
Allure,
13 Mar. 2025
Noun
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His lack of physical presence was an issue for O’Neil but his game is even further removed from Pereira’s vision of an ideal centre-back, so a parting of the ways there in the summer also appears likely.—
Steve Madeley,
The Athletic,
14 Mar. 2025
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This vision of the future is becoming increasingly real thanks to advancements in autonomous driving technology.—
Kurt Knutsson, CyberGuy Report,
Fox News,
13 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Pipe dream.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pipe%20dream. Accessed 26 Mar. 2025.
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