HomeWhat does the idiom pie in the sky mean?
Wiki User
2013-03-01 15:14:27
2013-03-01 15:14:27
"Pie in the Sky " means a reward that comes after death. It refers to the Church's promise of an eternal, catered party in Heaven, but only if we submit quietly to the malnourishment it allows on Earth. The phrase was coined by Joe Hill in 1902, in his song The Preacher and the Slave, a parody of the Salvation Army hymn In the Sweet Bye and Bye. The chorus goes:
You will eat, bye and bye/ In that glorious land above the sky;/ Work and pray, live on hay/You'll get pie in the sky when you die.
The phrase wasn't taken up until the Second World War, when it began to be used figuratively to refer to any prospect of future happiness which was unlikely ever to be realized. For example, this report from the California newspaper The Fresno Bee, November 1939:
"The business world is fearful that Roosevelt's obsession with war problems will mean a continued neglect of questions which still restrict trade and profits. They are highly skeptical of Washington's promise that they will 'eat pie in the sky' solely from war orders, which they decry publicly.
Some people confuse this phrase with the idiom "building castles in the air ( or in Spain)", referring to unrealistic plans or hopes.
Pie in the sky is a pipe dream - a very unrealistic wish, dream or desire.
Related Questions
it is an idiom.......1. Fig. a future reward after death, considered as a replacement for a reward not received on earth. Don't hold out for pie in the sky
It's "pie in the sky," and it originated in 1911 in a poem by Joe Hill. The poem told how preachers promised their followers that everything would be grand once they died and went to heaven, that they would have everything they wanted, including pie, "up in the sky" or in heaven.
It's not an idiom because you can figure out what it means by defining the terms. Someone is ordering you to raise your hands, as if you were trying to reach up to touch the sky.
Nothing. It's "finger in every pie," and it means he is involved in many different projects or things.
This isn't an idiom - it's talking about some animal with their tail held high, flying behind them.
It's pie in the sky that pigs can fly!
It's PIE, not pies. "Eating humble pie" is a way of saying you were humbled -- you were forced to "eat your words" or correct yourself.
It is not an idiom. When you see "as ___ as ___" you are dealing with a simile, and those are just comparisons between two things. "As nice as pie" would be very nice, because pie is a nice, tasty dessert.
This isn't an idiom. Soggy means damp and moist, no longer crispy. This sounds like a dialect speech, talking about a pie that got soggy.
No, It Is Actually An Idiom.
The origin of the idiom finger in every pie is unknown. The saying means being involved in a lot of things or knowing about a lot of things.
The phrase "The sky is falling" has passed into the English language as a common idiom indicating a hysterical or mistaken belief that disaster is imminent.
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Nothing. However, to have a finger in every pie means that you have a lot of varied interests and business contacts.
"Sky high" just means very high. You usually hear this as "blown sky high," which would mean either (literally) something exploded and was thrown high in the air, or (figuratively) that someone's plans were thoroughly destroyed.
The cast of A Pie in the Sky - 1965 includes: Bob McFadden
The Sky Is Up as Far as i Know the Pie can't be put up or it will fall The sky has a Heavy Package If you Throw Some thing It Will Come Back down . The Sky is More inportent in Life I Don't Care if Pie is Yummy To eat .. So there your Anwser is Sky
In perfect order or condition or in tidy condition for example: everything was apple pie order
Pie in the Sky - 1994 Game Pie 3-2 is rated/received certificates of: UK:PG (video rating) (2011)
A Pie in the Sky - 1965 TV was released on: USA: 6 December 1965
Wow Grandma, your apple pie is so good it blows Mom's apple pie out of the water!
Something that is an absolute surprise.
It means to be alive; to live.
If something is just pie in the sky then the chances of the thing actually ever actually materialising or happening are really really narrow and the speaker is probably showing off to make an impression on the listener.A promise of heaven whilst suffering on earth
RFP is not an idiom. It's an abbreviation.
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