wild goose chase
WYLD GOOS CHAYS
waɪld ɡuːs tʃeɪsListen
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Dictionary meaning
a futile, time-wasting pursuit of something unattainable or a fruitless search based on false or misleading information; originally a sixteenth-century horse racing term for a formation race in which other horses followed the leader in a set pattern resembling wild geese flying in formation, the phrase shifted to its current meaning of a hopeless or misguided quest; a wild goose chase is not merely difficult — it is predicated on a false premise, sending the pursuer in entirely the wrong direction, making effort not just unrewarded but fundamentally misdirected from the outset
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