Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. See ignis fatuus.
- n. A delusive or misleading hope.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. The ignis fatuus; hence, any person or thing that deludes or misleads by dazzling, visionary, or evanescent appearances. Also will-in-the-wisp, will-with-a-wisp, and Jack o' lantern.
- n. A common fresh-water alga, Nostoc commune: so named from its sudden and seemingly mysterious appearance. See Nostoc.
Wiktionary
- n. alternative spelling of will o' the wisp.
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. See ignis fatuus.
WordNet 3.0
- n. a pale light sometimes seen at night over marshy ground
- n. an illusion that misleads
Etymologies
- From the name Will (nickname for William).
Examples
“That is, the media have been chasing a will-o'-the-wisp for the better part of a year, whipping car buyers and Congress into a frenzy.”
“The audience is shivering, and that's not just down to Warpaint's eldritch, will-o'-the-wisp music.”
“Dim will-o'-the-wisp glows came from the warm globes of the street lamps overhead.”
“A torch light, erratic as a will-o'-the-wisp, was weaving towards him from the direction of the Grange.”
“I may be on the trail in this matter, or I may be following a will-o'-the-wisp, but I shall soon know which it is.”
“The other man of the hour at the time, former Speaker Newt Gingrich was a will-o'-the-wisp compared to Limbaugh and his staying power.”
“Without their steady stream of oil money to keep will-o'-the-wisp economies from sinking into the bog, they are in serious trouble.”
“People are "pursuing a will-o'-the-wisp if they think by just letting the dollar slide enough, the trade balance will turn around," says Ronald McKinnon,”
“Pauline cringes at the heartache Chick inflicted as a demanding child, obnoxious teen and brusque, oblivious adult chasing the will-o'-the-wisp of a baseball career.”
“The town has mown an access path into a portion of the undiscovered country, and the fragrance of the mown grass-turning-into-hay, along with clover and bedstraw/madder, and the wild roses, well, it's better than will-o'-the-wisp or the pied piper's flute for calling you to come on in, come on in...”
Lists
‘will-o'-the-wisp’ hasn't been added to any lists yet.
epopticamarie twilight hovering bog lights Mar 31, 2009
gangerh I thought this should have been lil-o'-the-lisp. Apr 21, 2008
treeseed See corpse candle Feb 23, 2008