wild-goose chase
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wild-goose chase
Where it comes from
Early recorded use refers to a type of 16th century horse race where everyone had to try to follow the erratic course of the lead horse, like wild geese have to follow their leader in formation. Mentioned in 1593 in the English poet Gervase Markham’s book about horsemanship. Also mentioned in the William Shakespeare play Romeo and Juliet, Act 2, scene 4 by the character Mercutio: “Nay, if our wits run the wild-goose chase, I am done; for thou hast more of the wild goose in one of thy wits than, I am sure, I have in my whole five.” Mentioned in Robert Burton, Anatomy of Melancholy (1621). Common use in the current may be the origin for the sport sense.
noun wild-goose chases · wild goose chase
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A futile search, a fruitless errand; a useless and often lengthy task whose execution is inordinately complex relative to the value of the outcome.
I went on a wild-goose chase all over the town looking for that adapter until I discovered they no longer make them.
Similar: merry dance, exercise in futility, fool's errand, snipe hunt, snark hunt
Translations
Every language
noun fruitless, futile pursuit
| Español | búsqueda inútil |
|---|---|
| 中文 | 竹籃打水 /竹篮打水 zhúlándǎshuǐ, 徒勞 /徒劳 túláo |
| Português | caça aos gambozinos |
| Deutsch | but see sinnloses Unterfangen, fruchtloses Unterfangen |
| Italiano | ricerca inutile, ricerca vana, caccia ai fantasmi, sforzo inutile |
| עברית | מרדף שווא |
Talk about this word "wild-goose chase." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/wild-goose%20chase. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. wild-goose chase. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/wild-goose%20chase "wild-goose chase." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/wild-goose%20chase.Cite this
@misc{wild_goose_chase_2026,
title = {wild-goose chase},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/wild-goose%20chase},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
