when pigs fly

when pigs fly

At a point in time that will never come to pass. (Used to show skepticism or cynicism over some hypothetical situation or outcome.) A: "If we could just both political parties to agree on a tax reform bill, we could bring the deficit down in no time." B: "Sure, that will happen—when pigs fly!" I'm sure that David would be happy to pay for everyone—when pigs fly, that is.

See also: fly, pig

Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.

when pigs fly

Never, as in Sure he'll pay for the drinks-when pigs fly. Equating the flight of pigs with something impossible dates from the early 1600s, when several writers alleged that pigs fly with their tails forward. The idiom is also put as pigs may fly.

See also: fly, pig

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

when pigs fly

Also, and pigs might fly. Never. Versions of this sarcastic remark, indicating the unlikeliness of an event, date from at least the eighteenth century. One of the first written versions was “That is as likely as to see a Hog fly” (Thomas Fuller, Gnomologia, 1732), and numerous proverb collections repeat the idea. For example, “Will I work for that company again? When pigs fly!” See also till hell freezes over.

See also: fly, pig

The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer Copyright © 2013 by Christine Ammer