airy-fairy

[ air-ee-fair-ee ]

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.

airy-fairy

/ ˈɛərɪˈfɛərɪ /

adjective

1. informal.
   fanciful and unrealistic

   an airy-fairy scheme

2. delicate to the point of being insubstantial; light

Word History and Origins

Origin of airy-fairy¹

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of airy-fairy¹

C19: from Tennyson's poem Lillian (1830), where the central figure is described as "Airy, fairy Lillian"

Example Sentences

Nothing of the tootsey-wootsey about her foot, and nothing of the airy-fairy trifle about her slipper.

From Project Gutenberg

The airy fairy fancies of happy Dreamland never grow old; they, like the glorious stars above us, are always young.

From Project Gutenberg

There is nothing more beautiful than the airy-fairy soap-bubble with its everchanging colors.

From Project Gutenberg

The happiness of those lovely little airy fairy creatures was without alloy.

From Project Gutenberg

I congratulate you and Mrs. Starbuck also on airy fairy Lilian, who makes, I believe, the third.

From Project Gutenberg