wild-goose chase
[ wahyld-goos ]
/ ˈwaɪldˈgus /
noun
a wild or absurd search for something nonexistent or unobtainable: a wild-goose chase looking for a building long demolished.
any senseless pursuit of an object or end; a hopeless enterprise: Her scheme of being a movie star is a wild-goose chase.
Origin of wild-goose chase
First recorded in 1585–95
Words nearby wild-goose chase
wild west show,
wild yam,
wild-and-woolly,
wild-card,
wild-eyed,
wild-goose chase,
wild-headed,
wildcat,
wildcat bank,
wildcat strike,
wildcatter
British Dictionary definitions for wild goose chase
wild-goose chase
noun
an absurd or hopeless pursuit, as of something unattainable
Idioms and Phrases with wild goose chase
wild goose chase
A futile search or pursuit, as in I think she sent us on a wild goose chase looking for their beach house. This idiom originally referred to a form of 16th-century horseracing requiring riders to follow a leader in a particular formation (presumably resembling a flock of geese in flight). Its figurative use dates from about 1600.