What is the origin of the expression "pipe dream?"

Answer by  BrendaG (6111)

This expression reportedly originates in America. First expressed in Chicago in 1890, it denotes that aerial navigation had been a "pipe dream" for years. In 1895, the Ft. Wayne Gazette associated "pipe dream" with opium smoking and opium devotees. The words mean an unrealistic hope or fantasy.

Answer by  Nancy (578)

This is a pretty simple answer. Opium gives a person ideas and fantasies or dreams of things that can be accomplished. The easiest way to inhale opium is by the use of putting it in a pipe, so this is where this term comes from.