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- Dictionarywill-o'-the-wisp/ˌwɪləðəˈwɪsp/
noun
- 1. a phosphorescent light seen hovering or floating at night on marshy ground, thought to result from the combustion of natural gases.
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In folklore, a will-o'-the-wisp, will-o'-wisp, or ignis fatuus (Latin for 'foolish flame'; pl. ignes fatui), is an atmospheric ghost light seen by travellers at night, especially over bogs, swamps or marshes.
something that is impossible to get or achieve: Full employment is the will-o'-the-wisp that politicians have been chasing for decades. SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases. Unachievable. be (a) no go idiom. be on a hiding to nothing idiom. be on the road to nowhere idiom. be out of your league idiom. cat. ghost. goodbye. impossibility.
The will-o'-the-wisp is a flame-like phosphorescence caused by gases from decaying plants in marshy areas. In olden days, it was personified as "Will with the wisp," a sprite who carried a fleeting "wisp" of light.
noun. 1. Also called: friar's lantern, ignis fatuus, jack-o'-lantern. a pale flame or phosphorescence sometimes seen over marshy ground at night. It is believed to be due to the spontaneous combustion of methane or other hydrocarbons originating from decomposing organic matter. 2. a person or thing that is elusive or allures and misleads.
noun. Also calledfriar's lanternignis fatuusjack-o'-lantern a pale flame or phosphorescence sometimes seen over marshy ground at night. It is believed to be due to the spontaneous combustion of methane or other hydrocarbons originating from decomposing organic matter.
a blue light that is sometimes seen at night on soft, wet ground and is caused by natural gases burning. Word Origin. Check pronunciation: will-o’-the-wisp. Definition of will-o’-the-wisp noun in Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary. Meaning, pronunciation, picture, example sentences, grammar, usage notes, synonyms and more.
IPA guide. Definitions of will-o'-the-wisp. noun. a pale light sometimes seen at night over marshy ground. synonyms: friar's lantern, ignis fatuus, jack-o'-lantern. see more. noun. an illusion that misleads. synonyms: ignis fatuus.
A person or thing that is or seems to be fleeting, intangible, or illusory. The president's stance on the issue has been something of a will-o'-the wisp, seeming to change or disappear entirely as the political climate dictates.
Ignis fatuus. Any hope or goal that leads one on but is impossible to reach. Alternative spelling of will o' the wisp. (idiomatic, British folklore) A strange light that attracts travellers from pathways into dangerous marshes or graveyards.
noun. An erroneous perception of reality: delusion, hallucination, ignis fatuus, illusion, mirage, phantasm, phantasma.
