Pigs might fly
Meaning
Used to express extreme skepticism or the belief that something is highly improbable or impossible.
Origin
The image of a pig taking to the skies has long been a shorthand for the impossible. Though variations existed earlier, one of the earliest clear ancestors of "Pigs might fly" appears in a 1611 collection of proverbs, "A Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue," which lists "Pigs fly, and pigs run hard." Jonathan Swift later popularized the sentiment in "Gulliver's Travels" (1726), when he wrote, "He would as soon believe that pigs can fly." The phrase brilliantly uses the incongruity of a heavy, earth-bound creature defying gravity to express absolute disbelief, embedding itself in the English language as the ultimate retort to an improbable claim.
Examples
- You think my brother will finish his chores without being asked? Pigs might fly!
- The boss said we'll all get a huge raise this year. Pigs might fly.