airy-fairy

Also found in: Thesaurus, Idioms.

air·y-fair·y

also airy fairy (âr′ē-fâr′ē)Chiefly British Slang

adj.

Insubstantial or impractical: "You are talking about some airy fairy concept which will never come in my lifetime" (Margaret Thatcher).

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

airy-fairy

(ˈɛərɪˈfɛərɪ)

adj

1. informal fanciful and unrealistic: an airy-fairy scheme.

2. delicate to the point of being insubstantial; light

[C19: from Tennyson's poem Lillian (1830), where the central figure is described as "Airy, fairy Lillian"]

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

air′y-fair′y

adj.

1. delicate or lovely.

2. unrealistic: airy-fairy ideas about winning the sweepstakes.

[1830]

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Switch to new thesaurus

airy-fairy

adjective fanciful, lightweight, shaky, feeble, flimsy, unconvincing, unsound, insubstantial, without substance, incorporeal, chimerical their airy-fairy principles
firm, sound, solid, substantial, concrete

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

Translations

airy-fairy

[ˌɛərɪˈfɛərɪ] ADJ (Brit) [ideas, principles] → superficial, vacío; [plan, promises] → vano, fantasioso; [person] → insustancial

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

airy-fairy

[ˌɛərɪˈfɛəri] (British) adj (British) [ideas, principles] → farfelu(e)

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

airy-fairy

adj (Brit inf) → versponnen; excuse → windig; talk → versponnen, larifari inv (inf); your plans seem rather airy-fairy → deine Pläne scheinen ziemlich unausgegoren

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

airy-fairy

[ˈɛərɪˈfɛərɪ] adj (fam) → vago/a

Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

Mentioned in ?

References in periodicals archive ?

However, perhaps it was a dose of pragmatism that won the consortium this deal as they identified crucial infrastructure and operational failings and offered to do something about them forthwith, rather than engaging in airy-fairy musings on grand schemes in the distant future.

Sofia Airport: Bulgaria Appoints Meridiam/Munich Airport Consortium

Turning to the concept of useful versus "airy-fairy" academic disciplines and the job market, let me look at two pairs of brothers.

It is not all about money

The airy-fairy promises of wannabe premiers are worthless, just like their manifesto commitment to keep free licences for the over-75s.

The North can go west as far as Tories care

The second query might sound a bit airy-fairy, but in the context of the current economic crisis that the country is going through, it becomes relevant to raise it.

Art and its efficacy

After a speech the Duke of Sussex gave during a WE day event, talk radio hosts have reacted negatively to what he said-and talkRADIO host Dan Wootton (https://www.express.co.uk/news/royal/1097833/Meghan-Markle-Prince-Harry-news-latest-baby-WE-day-helicopter-London-Prince-William) is the latest to criticize him for it, referring to the Prince as an "airy-fairy hippie" and liberal, but also apparently calling him hypocritical due to his own actions.

Meghan Markle Influences Prince Harry In This Negative Way

It sounds airy-fairy, but it made me feel better about myself.

I'm doing it by the book now

Sir- I noticed a lot of Brexit supporters have been appearing from the woodwork recently to try and re-assure your readers they have nothing to fear from their airy-fairy aspirations.

Hard Brexit lesson needs driven home

Catholicism is dismissed as being 'airy-fairy', which in the history of movies is possibly the nicest comment my religion has received.

APOSTASY (PG) HHHH H THERE'S [...]

Catholicism is dismissed being 'airy-fairy', which in the history of movies is possibly the nicest comment my religion has received.

APOSTASY

The PTI leader, who developed the theatrical, but wearying and ineffective 'dharna' or sit-in as his major weapon, is now endangering his future political fortunes on airy-fairy assumptions and great expectations, instead of coming up with solid, issue-based solutions to garner votes.

Clutching at straws

It is a somewhat brutal reminder that the spiritual life, in contrast to being rather ethereal and airy-fairy, is solid and grounded--right here and right now.