Search results
- Dictionarymare's nest
noun
- 1. a complex or confused situation; a muddle: "your desk's usually a mare's nest"
- 2. an illusory discovery: "the mare's nest of perfect safety"
Powered by Oxford Dictionaries
The meaning of MARE'S NEST is a false discovery, illusion, or deliberate hoax. How to use mare's nest in a sentence.
The first, and ‘proper’ meaning, has it that finding a mare’s nest is imagining that one has found something remarkable when in fact one has found nothing of the sort. The second meaning, which is more widespread today, is that a mare’s nest is a confused mess – more on that later.
something imagined to be an extraordinary discovery but proving to be a delusion or a hoax. The announced cure for the disease was merely another mare's-nest. 2. an extremely confused, entangled, or disordered place, situation, etc.
A mare's nest is here being used to symbolize something that does not exist, as horses do not make nests. The phrase is first recorded in the late 16th century, as is the variant a horse's nest , although the latter is now no longer in use.
Mare's-nest definition: something imagined to be an extraordinary discovery but proving to be a delusion or a hoax. See examples of MARE'S-NEST used in a sentence.
- www.usingenglish.com
- › Grammar Reference
- › Idioms
- › M
Idioms. Mare's nest meaning. What does the saying 'Mare's nest' mean? Idiom: Mare's nest. Meaning: A mare's nest is a complicated or confused situation, a mess. Country: International English | Subject Area: Animals | Usage Type: Both or All Words Used. Contributor: Richard Flynn.
Jun 2, 2024 · mare 's nest (plural mare's nests or mares' nests) A great discovery which turns out to be illusory; a hoax. c. 1620, John Fletcher (playwright), Bonduca, V.2: Why dost thou laugh? What Mares nest hast thou found? A confused or complicated situation; a muddle.
A mare’s nest is a hoax, an illusion or a confused and illogical mess. The expression dates from the early 17th century and is preceded by an earlier expression, a horse’ nest, which means the same thing. It obviously derives from the nonsensical or illusory notion of horses building nests.
mare’s nest meaning, definition, what is mare’s nest: a discovery that seems important but is ...: Learn more.
Define mare's nest. mare's nest synonyms, mare's nest pronunciation, mare's nest translation, English dictionary definition of mare's nest. n. pl. mare's nests or mares' nests 1. A hoax or fraud. 2. An extraordinarily complicated situation. American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language,...
