English

Alternative forms

• wild goose chase

Noun

wild-goose chase ‎(plural wild-goose chases) (idiomatic)

1. (figuratively) A futile search, a fruitless errand; a useless and often lengthy pursuit.

   I went on a wild-goose chase all over the town looking for that adapter until I discovered they no longer make them.

2. A task whose execution is inordinately complex relative to the value of the outcome.

   Diagnosing this software application's problems is a wild-goose chase because it is built in an environment that has poor debugging tools.

Usage notes

• As wild-goose chase literally means "a chase for wild geese", it is usually hyphenated as shown for clarity. The form without the hyphen is also commonly seen, and can be construed as a "wild chase", not an inevitably fruitless one, after a possibly domesticated and flightless goose, rather than after a wild goose.

Synonyms

• (fruitless errand): merry dance

Translations

See also

• red herring
• the cake is a lie
• tilt at windmills

References

1. ↑ Re: Wild-goose chase, archive of Phrasefinder.org