airy-fairy

American  

[air-ee-fair-ee] / ˈɛər iˈfɛər i /

adjective

1. Informal. delicate or lovely.

   an airy-fairy actress;

   an airy-fairy nightgown.

2. Informal. not based on reality or concerned with mundane affairs; unrealistic.

   He'd better get rid of those airy-fairy ideas about spending a fortune that isn't even his.

3. Slang: Disparaging and Offensive. effeminate.

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airy-fairy British  

/ ˈɛərɪˈfɛərɪ /

adjective

1. informal fanciful and unrealistic

   an airy-fairy scheme

2. delicate to the point of being insubstantial; light

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Etymology

Origin of airy-fairy

First recorded in 1830–40, perhaps originally in the phrase “airy, fairy Lilian” in Alfred, Lord Tennyson's poem “Lilian” (1830)

Example Sentences

Airy, fairy Lilian, Flitting, fairy Lilian, When I ask her if she love me, Clasps her tiny hand above me, Laughing all she can; She'll not tell me if she love me, Cruel little Lilian.

From The Home Book of Verse — Volume 2 by Stevenson, Burton Egbert

Sweetly solemn see them stand, Spinning churns on either hand, Neatly capped and aproned white— Airy fairy dairy sight!

From Songs for a Little House by Morley, Christopher

The "Airy, fairy Lilian" and "Sweet, pale Margaret" type of verse had charmed him overmuch.

From Halleck's New English Literature by Halleck, Reuben Post

Airy, fairy Lilian, Flitting, fairy Lilian, When I ask her if she love me, Claps her tiny hands above me, Laughing all she can; She'll not tell me if she love me, Cruel little Lilian.

From Beauties of Tennyson by Schell, Frederic B.