la-la land
Americannoun
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a state of being out of touch with reality.
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(usually initial capital letters) Los Angeles.
noun
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a nickname for Los Angeles
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(not capitals) a place that is remote from reality
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Los Angeles, California (often abbreviated L.A.). This expression pokes fun at the alleged eccentricities of the city's inhabitants. For example, What do you expect? Frederick has lived in la-la land for ten years and it has rubbed off on him . [ Slang ; c. 1980]
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A state of being out of touch with reality, as in I don't know what's going on with Amy—she seems to be in la-la land . [ Slang ; c. 1980] Also see cloud-cuckoo land ; never-never land .
Etymology
Origin of la-la land
1980–85; reduplication of L.A., abbreviation of Los Angeles
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
That’s what he fears most now, and it helps explain why he seems to be going from merely off the rails to a headlong dash to la-la land.
From Salon • Sep. 18, 2024
Former Post Office boss Paula Vennells has been accused of living in "la-la land" by a lawyer representing sub-postmasters.
From BBC • May 24, 2024
You literally know this guy is in la-la land.
From Washington Post • Nov. 8, 2020
“Now that we realize, all of us, that we were living in la-la land, we can’t fix them,” said Fawaz.
From Slate • Oct. 29, 2020
Paws twitching, Fig was entering kitty la-la land.
From "Sir Fig Newton and the Science of Persistence" by Sonja Thomas
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
