- airy-fairy
- Adj. Lacking in strength, insubstantial. Informal
English slang and colloquialisms. 2014.
airy-fairy
Look at other dictionaries:
airy fairy — adj BrE informal not sensible or practical ▪ airy fairy ideas … Dictionary of contemporary English
airy-fairy — adjective BRITISH INFORMAL not practical or sensible … Usage of the words and phrases in modern English
airy-fairy — ► ADJECTIVE informal, chiefly Brit. ▪ foolishly idealistic and vague … English terms dictionary
airy-fairy — [er′ēfer′ē] adj. Chiefly Brit. 1. a) fairylike; graceful; delicate b) affected, mannered, etc. 2. not realistic; impractical; visionary … English World dictionary
airy-fairy — /air ee fair ee/, adj. 1. Informal. a. delicate or lovely: an airy fairy actress; an airy fairy nightgown. b. not based on reality or concerned with mundane affairs; unrealistic: airy fairy ideas about spending a fortune that isn t even his. 2.… … Universalium
airy-fairy — ADJ GRADED (disapproval) If you describe someone s ideas as airy fairy, you are critical of them because you think the ideas are vague, impractical, and unrealistic. [BRIT] ...their airy fairy principles … English dictionary
airy-fairy — /ˌɛəri ˈfɛəri/ (say .airree fairree) adjective Colloquial 1. light and delicate; whimsical; fanciful. 2. lacking sufficient substance or realism: airy fairy plans. {from airy, fairy Lilian of Tennyson s poem Lilian (1830) …
airy-fairy — mod. insubstantial; of wishful thinking. □ Haven t you outgrown that kind of airy fairy thinking yet? □ I don’t care to hear any more of your airy fairy ideas … Dictionary of American slang and colloquial expressions
airy-fairy — adjective Date: 1850 1. chiefly British delicate, fairylike 2. chiefly British lacking substance or purpose < in…an airy fairy, unserious, insufficiently careful fashion Times Lite … New Collegiate Dictionary
airy-fairy — not real, impractical, pie in the sky Sell flying saucers to little gray people? That s too airy fairy for me! … English idioms
airy-fairy — British, informal not practical or not useful in real situations. She s talking about selling her house and buying an old castle in Ireland. It all sounds a bit airy fairy to me … New idioms dictionary
