as in pipe dream
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Recent Examples of ignis fatuus
Several sources say ignis fatuus, a spark of swamp gas, is the likely cause of the strange light.
—
Fox News, 3 Mar. 2023
The story also helped explain ignis fatuus, a natural phenomenon that occurs in marshlands and bogs—such as those in Ireland’s countryside—producing flickering lights as gases from decomposing organic matter combust.
—National Geographic, 27 Oct. 2020
Fox News, 3 Mar. 2023
The story also helped explain ignis fatuus, a natural phenomenon that occurs in marshlands and bogs—such as those in Ireland’s countryside—producing flickering lights as gases from decomposing organic matter combust.
—National Geographic, 27 Oct. 2020
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ignis fatuus
Noun
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Olga and Antoine’s grand schemes of rural regeneration have proved to be a lefty pipe dream.—
Bartolomeo Sala,
The Dial,
27 Mar. 2025
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While federal banking reform was a step forward, full legalization remains a pipe dream.—
Matt Rozo,
The Mercury News,
26 Feb. 2025
Noun
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Fans should no longer buy into the mirage that his persona promotes.—
Brian Mazique,
Forbes.com,
13 Apr. 2025
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But alas, what at initial blush sounded to be a great result for the husband’s plan, and a really great result for his children (all the money immediately on their father’s passing, no estate tax, no capital gains tax and improved investment opportunities) is just a mirage.—
Martin Shenkman,
Forbes,
20 Feb. 2025
Noun
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Officials shouldn’t chase the chimera of independence but instead try to build flexibility in a diversified and interconnected system.—
Jason Bordoff,
Foreign Affairs,
30 Nov. 2021
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The chimera turned out really well.—
Rick Porter,
The Hollywood Reporter,
10 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Researchers noted the positive effects of ecstatic epilepsy and synthesized fifty-three theoretical models of delusion.—
Rafil Kroll-Zaidi,
Harpers Magazine,
17 Apr. 2025
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Some might suggest that these delusions of grandeur are designed to tranquilize the nervous masses; regardless, the public obviously craves them.—
Lauren Stienstra,
Time,
17 Apr. 2025
Noun
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But as with its aww-shucks hero, there’s more to it than meets the eye; something much stranger lurks behind the slight Twilight Zone unreality of its very movie-ish Midwest.—
A.A. Dowd,
Vulture,
28 Apr. 2025
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All those books teaching parents how to take care of their children—the first year, the first eighteen months, the first five or ten years—none of them addresses this difficulty: for parents and for children, the border between reality and unreality is not always clearly marked.—
Yiyun Li,
The New Yorker,
23 Mar. 2025
Noun
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After all, strategy without execution is a daydream, but execution without strategy is a nightmare.—
Dev Patnaik,
Forbes.com,
14 Apr. 2025
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If your daydreams about jetting off on a European vacation keep getting thwarted by your budget and bank account, all hope isn’t lost.—
Tara Massouleh McCay,
Southern Living,
13 Apr. 2025
Noun
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This city will never be the same, insofar as our sense of safety, our illusions of permanence and so on, are gone.—
Lorraine Berry,
Los Angeles Times,
21 Apr. 2025
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Mat previously impressed judges on America’s Got Talent in 2014 with his magic, illusions and card tricks.—
Brian Anthony Hernandez,
People.com,
20 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Ignis fatuus.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ignis%20fatuus. Accessed 4 May. 2025.
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