airy-fairy

[ air-ee-fair-ee ]

/ ˈɛər iˈfɛər i /

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adjective

Informal.

delicate or lovely: an airy-fairy actress; an airy-fairy nightgown.
not based on reality or concerned with mundane affairs; unrealistic: airy-fairy ideas about spending a fortune that isn't even his.

Slang. effeminate; swishy.

QUIZ

TAKE JOY IN ACING THIS QUIZ ON “PRIDE” SYNONYMS

Hold your head up high as you embark on this quiz that explores some of the synonyms and meanings of “pride.”

Question 1 of 7

What does "dignity" mean?

showing self-respect

treating others with kindness

acting selfishly

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of airy-fairy

Perhaps originally in the phrase “airy, fairy Lilian” in Tennyson's poem “Lilian” (1830)

Words nearby airy-fairy

airwoman, air wood, airworthy, airy, Airy disc, airy-fairy, AIS, Aisha, AISI, AISI steel, aisle

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use airy-fairy in a sentence

But when the darkness closes in, we actually run to fairy tales and fables.
On Torture, Chuck Johnson & Sondheim|James Poulos|December 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Actually, rather like Gruber, we feel rather icky about fairy tales.
On Torture, Chuck Johnson & Sondheim|James Poulos|December 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Not that the demonstration had anything to do with this couple, whom Sarah seems to see as a fairy tale come to life.
Synagogue Slay: When Cops Have to Kill|Michael Daly|December 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Were the fairy-tale true it really would shame the affluent west.
The Dark Side of Cuba’s Ebola Economy|James Bloodworth|December 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST

In reality, prison weddings look nothing like the fairy tales depicted on TV and in bridal magazines.
Saying Yes to the Dress—Behind Bars|Caitlin Dickson|December 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The tailor of the fairy tale with his "seven at a blow" is not in it with the gunnery Lieutenant of a battleship.
Gallipoli Diary, Volume I|Ian Hamilton
The Elizabethan pipes were so small that now when they are dug up in Ireland the poor call them 'fairy pipes' from their tininess.
Tobacco; Its History, Varieties, Culture, Manufacture and Commerce|E. R. Billings.
Spenser in his Fairy Queen makes one of the characters include it with other herbs celebrated for medicinal qualities.
Tobacco; Its History, Varieties, Culture, Manufacture and Commerce|E. R. Billings.
She had just come to forty-nine, and was wondering if she might remind the fairy father of his duty, when the door opened.
Rosemary in Search of a Father|C. N. Williamson
Many years ago I collected together a large number of these 'Fairy Pipes' from all parts of the kingdom.
Tobacco; Its History, Varieties, Culture, Manufacture and Commerce|E. R. Billings.

British Dictionary definitions for airy-fairy

airy-fairy

/ (ˈɛərɪˈfɛərɪ) /

adjective

informal fanciful and unrealistican airy-fairy scheme

delicate to the point of being insubstantial; light

Word Origin for airy-fairy

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

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012