VOA词汇掌故2024--Is 'Pie in the Sky' Just a Dream?

 

And now, Words and Their Stories, from VOA Learning English.

On this program, we explore words and expressions in the English language. We give examples, notes on usage¹, and sometimes, we use them in short conversations.

Today we talk about the sweet dish at the end of a meal -- the dessert. One of the most famous kinds of dessert is pie. With a buttery crust and sweet fillings like apple, berries, or banana cream, a well-made pie is a dreamy food, indeed.

And that gives us the expression pie in the sky.

Imagine a perfect pie coming down to you from the sky. That is like a dream. And a pie in the sky is a dream, too.

Anything described as pie-in-the-sky is fun to daydream² about but is very unlikely to happen. When we act in a pie-in-the-sky manner, we are being foolishly optimistic.

Any industry or area of life can have pie-in-the-sky ideas. So, you can use this expression for different situations.

In business, let's say a company has lost money for two straight years. But the company chief promised increased earnings³ in the coming year. Her claims, as they say, were simply pie in the sky. She had no business plan or data to support them.

An unpublished writer may have pie-in-the-sky dreams about her book being turned into a multi-million dollar film project.

A teacher may have pie-in-the-sky wishes that all his students complete their homework on time.

Pies in the sky are empty promises or empty wishes. They are wishful thinking. They are as unlikely as tasty pies falling from the sky.

American English has another similar expression: pipe dream. The expression is also used to describe a plan, hope, or wish that is highly unlikely to happen.

However, this expression does not come from a tasty bakery. Word experts say it started in opium⁵ dens⁶. Here, people would smoke opium in long pipes and then fall into a dreamlike state where nothing seemed real.

Now let's hear two friends using the expressions pipe dream and pie in the sky.

A: Hey, did you hear about Sarah? She's moving to Spain!

B: Really? Last week, she told me she was having trouble paying her rent.

A: Well, she told me this morning that she's moving to Madrid to open a bakery.

B: Sarah? Open a bakery? That sounds like a total pie in the sky to me. She can't even make toast.

A: You know, it sounded like a pipe dream when she told me. She didn't have details. Just a lot of dreamy talk.

B: Well, if she wants to turn her pie-in-the-sky bakery dream into a reality, I'd advise her to do one thing first - learn how to bake.

And that's all the time we have for this Words and Their Stories. Until next time, I'm Anna Matteo.

Words in This Story

butter -n. a solid yellow fatty food made by churning milk or cream : buttery -adj. containing or spread with butter

crust -n. the pastry⁷ shell of a pie

foolishly -adv. having or showing a lack of good sense, judgment⁸, or discretion⁹

optimistic -adj. feeling or showing hope for the future

bakery -n. a place where bread, cakes, and pastry are made or sold

opium -n. a bitter brownish addictive¹⁰ narcotic¹¹ drug that consists of the dried latex obtained from immature¹² seed capsules of the opium poppy

den⁴ -n. a dirty run-down place in which people live or gather

rent -n. money paid for the use of property : a periodic payment made by a tenant to the owner for the use of the owner's property

1 usage   

n.惯用法，使用，用法

参考例句：

• I am clear about the usage of this word at last.这个词的用法我算是弄明白了。
• The usage is now firmly established.这种用法现已得到确认。

2 daydream   

v.做白日梦，幻想

参考例句：

• Boys and girls daydream about what they want to be.孩子们遐想着他们将来要干什么。
• He drifted off into another daydream.他飘飘然又做了一个白日梦。

3 earnings   

n.工资收人；利润，利益，所得

参考例句：

• That old man lives on the earnings of his daughter.那个老人靠他女儿的收入维持生活。
• Last year there was a 20% decrease in his earnings.去年他的收入减少了20%。

4 den   

n.兽穴；秘密地方；安静的小房间，私室

参考例句：

• There is a big fox den on the back hill.后山有一个很大的狐狸窝。
• The only way to catch tiger cubs is to go into tiger's den.不入虎穴焉得虎子。

5 opium   

n.鸦片；adj.鸦片的

参考例句：

• That man gave her a dose of opium.那男人给了她一剂鸦片。
• Opium is classed under the head of narcotic.鸦片是归入麻醉剂一类的东西。

6 dens   

n.牙齿，齿状部分；兽窝( den的名词复数 )；窝点；休息室；书斋

参考例句：

• Female bears tend to line their dens with leaves or grass. 母熊往往会在洞穴里垫些树叶或草。 来自辞典例句
• In winter bears usually hibernate in their dens. 冬天熊通常在穴里冬眠。 来自辞典例句

7 pastry   

n.油酥面团，酥皮糕点

参考例句：

• The cook pricked a few holes in the pastry.厨师在馅饼上戳了几个洞。
• The pastry crust was always underdone.馅饼的壳皮常常烤得不透。

8 judgment   

n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见

参考例句：

• The chairman flatters himself on his judgment of people.主席自认为他审视人比别人高明。
• He's a man of excellent judgment.他眼力过人。

9 discretion   

n.谨慎；随意处理

参考例句：

• You must show discretion in choosing your friend.你择友时必须慎重。
• Please use your best discretion to handle the matter.请慎重处理此事。

10 addictive   

adj.(吸毒等)使成瘾的，成为习惯的

参考例句：

• The problem with video game is that they're addictive.电子游戏机的问题在于它们会使人上瘾。
• Cigarettes are highly addictive.香烟很容易使人上瘾。

11 narcotic   

n.麻醉药，镇静剂；adj.麻醉的，催眠的

参考例句：

• Opium is classed under the head of narcotic.鸦片是归入麻醉剂一类的东西。
• No medical worker is allowed to prescribe any narcotic drug for herself.医务人员不得为自己开处方使用麻醉药品。

12 immature   

adj.未成熟的，发育未全的，未充分发展的

参考例句：

• Tony seemed very shallow and immature.托尼看起来好像很肤浅，不夠成熟。
• The birds were in immature plumage.这些鸟儿羽翅未全。