as in dream
a conception or image created by the imagination and having no objective reality
opening our own restaurant has long been a pipe dream
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Examples of pipe dream in a Sentence
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Seine-Saint-Denis, the northeastern department – roughly equivalent to a county in the US – where the stadium is located, is the poorest in mainland France, and for many of its 1.7 million residents, accessing facilities even close to the caliber of the Stade de France is a pipe dream.
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Emily Blumenthal, CNN, 24 July 2024
In this dark and brooding place, justice is a pipe dream.
—Karen D'souza, The Mercury News, 3 Aug. 2024
Mistrust and enmity, notably that between India and Pakistan, have made integration a pipe dream.
—Happymon Jacob, Foreign Affairs, 22 July 2024
Hydrogen power, not long ago considered a sci-fi pipe dream, is climbing closer to reality.
—Mack Degeurin, Popular Science, 11 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for pipe dream 
Emily Blumenthal, CNN, 24 July 2024
In this dark and brooding place, justice is a pipe dream.
—Karen D'souza, The Mercury News, 3 Aug. 2024
Mistrust and enmity, notably that between India and Pakistan, have made integration a pipe dream.
—Happymon Jacob, Foreign Affairs, 22 July 2024
Hydrogen power, not long ago considered a sci-fi pipe dream, is climbing closer to reality.
—Mack Degeurin, Popular Science, 11 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for pipe dream
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'pipe dream.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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“Pipe dream.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pipe%20dream. Accessed 2 Oct. 2024.
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