空中楼阁 (kōng zhōng lóu gé) — castle in the air; unrealistic plan or vain hope

Definition

A chengyu meaning 'castle in the air' — a fanciful plan or idea that has no grounding in reality. Used to dismiss impractical schemes, not to describe literal fantasy.

noun

castle in the airunrealistic plan or vain hope

Examples

，空中楼阁。
Tā de jì huà suī rán tīng qǐ lái hěn hǎo, dàn qí shí jiù shì kōng zhōng lóu gé.
His plan sounds great, but it's actually a castle in the air.
空中楼阁，。
Bú yào zhuī qiú nà xiē kōng zhōng lóu gé bān de mèng xiǎng, xiàn shí yì diǎn ba.
Don't pursue those castle-in-the-air dreams; be more realistic.
空中楼阁。
Yí gè méi yǒu zī jīn de chuàng yè jì huà zhǐ shì kōng zhōng lóu gé.
A startup plan without funding is just a castle in the air.

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