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that it describes an impossibility. The implication of such a phrase is that the circumstances in question (the adynaton, and the circumstances to which the adynaton is being applied) will never occur. The phrase has been used in various forms since the 1600s as a sarcastic remark.
452:. Steinbeck wrote in a letter that he regarded Pigasus as a symbol of himself, to show he was "earthbound but aspiring not enough wingspread but plenty of intention". He sometimes added an image of a flying pig, called Pigasus.
466:
in the 1930s. Her
Pigasus was also a winged pig. His riders gained the gift of poesy, being magically compelled to speak in rhyming jingles while on his back. The character first appeared in
718:
161:
The idiom is apparently derived from a centuries-old
Scottish proverb, though some other references to pigs flying or pigs with wings are more famous. In his Fourth Book of
1187:
282:, "Pigs may fly, General, but I doubt it!" Later, when the Irishman sees German soldiers parachuting before an attack, he says to himself, "Mother of God! Flying pigs!"
194:
1530:
209:
effect, to scoff at over-ambition. There are numerous variations on the theme; when an individual with a reputation for failure finally succeeds, onlookers may
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was told by his professor that he would be an author when pigs flew. When he eventually became a novelist, he started to print every book he wrote with the
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217:. ("Hey look! A flying pig!") Other variations on the phrase include "And pigs will fly", this one in retort to an outlandish statement.
238:
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fights the
Chitterlings and its champion, "a huge, fat, thick, grizzly swine, with long and large wings, like those of a windmill."
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per alia porci" (intended to mean 'to the stars on the wings of a pig'). In Latin this is grammatically incorrect because
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And whether pigs have wings." —Through the
Looking Glass : and what Alice found there. pp. 75–76.
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In medieval Hebrew manuscripts, the expression "until the donkey ascends the ladder" is attested.
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bloom", which pertains to something that will never happen. This is because, in
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233:"Thinking again?" the Duchess asked, with another dig of her sharp little chin.
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237:"Just about as much right," said the Duchess, "as pigs have to fly ..." —
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30:"Flying pig" and "Flying pigs" redirect here. For the public house, see
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Alice's
Adventures in Wonderland: The Millennium Fulcrum Edition 3.0
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Uses of the phrase in famous literature include the later-mentioned
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is identical with the
English saying, although the older proverb "
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An identical phrase, used to express impossibilities, exists in
950:
691:"There's an old Arabic proverb: You can have apricots tomorrow"
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John
Steinbeck: A Biography, Jay Parini, Holt Publishing, 1996
665:"Until the donkey ascends the ladder: Hebrew scribal formulae"
448:
would be the accusative form of 'wings' after the preposition
214:
57:
373:
In
Russian, a popular expression with a similar meaning is "
649:
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insists that "with sufficient thrust, pigs fly just fine".
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301:" and "monkeys might fly out of my butt", popularized in
171:
makes the aphorism into a dramatic event, when the giant
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484:'s drawing instruction videos often feature a Pigasus.
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took a piglet with him on board an aeroplane in 1909
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769:Elaine Steinbeck and Robert Wallstein, ed. (1976).
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377:" (when the crayfish will whistle on the mountain).
346:Wenn Schweine Flügel hätten, wäre alles möglich"
669:British Library: Asian and African Studies Blog
455:Pigasus was also a flying pig character in the
244:
231:
195:John Moore-Brabazon, 1st Baron Brabazon of Tara
27:Figure of speech describing an impossible event
1531:Butareba: The Story of a Man Turned into a Pig
472:(1931) and played a major role in the plot of
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8:
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366:In French, the most common expression is "
415:is a portmanteau word combining pig with
359:" (when cows fly) is used because of its
108:Learn how and when to remove this message
274:replies to a German general speaking of
71:This article includes a list of general
1545:Jakers! The Adventures of Piggley Winks
521:
305:skits and movies. They are examples of
246:"The time has come," the Walrus said,
7:
623:"Tennis: Martina primed for revenge"
297:Similar phrases in English include "
250:Of shoes—and ships—and sealing-wax—
225:At least two appear in the works of
44:. For the sketch comedy group, see
689:Al Qasimi, Nouf (16 August 2012).
557:"Gargantua and His Son Pantagruel"
77:it lacks sufficient corresponding
25:
368:quand les poules auront des dents
324:, literally: "on horses' Easter".
1709:
1708:
1322:
621:Haylett, Trevor (June 4, 1993).
494:
254:And why the sea is boiling hot—
239:Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
180:Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
62:
1614:The Tale of Little Pig Robinson
893:Arthur Campbell Ainger (1887).
796:Pascal Covici Jr., ed. (2012).
292:List of idioms of improbability
583:. World Wide Words. 2002-04-06
395:), meaning "tomorrow when the
342:Wenn Schweine fliegen können!"
260:An example occurs in the film
1:
370:" (when the hens have teeth).
934:Humorous Internet memorandum
772:Steinbeck: A Life in Letters
502:Children's literature portal
444:means 'other things', while
128:in the shape of a flying pig
1741:Metaphors referring to pigs
829:. Bloomsbury. p. 260.
1767:
375:когда рак на горе свистнет
289:
50:
29:
1704:
1621:The Tale of Pigling Bland
1320:
984:
534:Largest Idioms Dictionary
248:"To talk of many things:
775:. Penguin. p. 296.
164:Gargantua and Pantagruel
34:. For the marathon, see
1746:Pigs in popular culture
1736:English-language idioms
1681:List of individual pigs
1538:Fair, then Partly Piggy
802:. Penguin. p. ii.
601:Carroll, Lewis (1991).
475:The Wishing Horse of Oz
252:Of cabbages—and kings—
92:more precise citations.
1686:List of fictional pigs
1390:Flitch of bacon custom
1188:Religious restrictions
896:The Eton Latin Grammar
799:The Portable Steinbeck
530:"when pigs fly origin"
383:In Arabic, there's an
299:when hell freezes over
258:
243:
213:claim to see a flying
201:"When pigs fly" is an
198:
129:
1468:Babe: Pig in the City
1425:The Three Little Pigs
899:. J. Murray. p.
723:Jewish Film Institute
327:The Latin expression
193:
123:
1488:Empress of Blandings
823:John Taylor (2017).
555:Rabelais, François.
464:Ruth Plumly Thompson
263:The Eagle Has Landed
51:For other uses, see
38:. For the film, see
1193:Scottish pork taboo
758:. Steinbeck Center.
423:American literature
389:bukra fil mish-mish
357:kun lehmät lentävät
330:ad kalendas graecas
318:Când o zbura porcul
278:'s shortly winning
136:" (alternatively, "
36:Flying Pig Marathon
1696:Pigasus (politics)
1558:Olivia (character)
1496:My Brother the Pig
873:"Wiktionary: alas"
852:"Wiktionary: alia"
510:Pigasus (politics)
355:, the expression "
199:
130:
1751:Figures of speech
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1635:Toot & Puddle
1628:This Little Piggy
1395:Floyd of Rosedale
1081:Intensive farming
836:978-1-4742-9989-3
826:Latin Beyond GCSE
717:Al Qasimi, Nouf.
652:. 3 October 2021.
561:Project Gutenberg
322:La Paștele cailor
169:François Rabelais
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268:secret agent
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1597:Porco Rosso
1583:Preston Pig
1475:Bad Piggies
1432:Animal Farm
1212:Boston butt
719:"Mish Mish"
462:written by
266:: an Irish
167:from 1553,
90:introducing
41:Flying Pigs
1730:Categories
1649:Wibbly Pig
1642:Huxley Pig
1608:Spider pig
1603:Spider-Ham
1400:Miss Piggy
1377:In culture
1289:Other uses
1272:Pork steak
1262:Spare ribs
1252:Tenderloin
1232:Pork belly
1207:Back bacon
1024:Subfamily
587:2013-04-14
566:2022-02-26
540:28 October
516:References
173:Pantagruel
150:hyperbolic
73:references
18:Flying pig
1655:Zhu Bajie
1563:TV series
1524:Super Pig
1517:Peppa Pig
1438:Old Major
1414:Porky Pig
1362:Razorback
1345:Wild boar
1314:Truffling
1309:Wrestling
1267:Pork rind
1242:Pork jowl
1237:Pork chop
1173:Slaughter
1143:Capocollo
1116:Swineherd
1101:Hog oiler
1012:Suborder
914:Jack Snow
756:"Pigasus"
728:18 August
702:18 August
431:Dog Latin
387:proverb "
140:") is an
98:July 2022
1691:Piganino
1665:Pig City
1552:Kazoops!
1453:Squealer
1448:Snowball
1443:Napoleon
1350:Heraldry
1222:Ham hock
1178:Suckling
1138:Bondiola
1121:Feedback
1061:Breeding
1052:Domestic
1038:Species
1002:Mammalia
996:Chordata
990:Animalia
988:Kingdom
488:See also
438:Ad astra
397:apricots
385:Egyptian
314:Romanian
207:humorous
203:adynaton
142:adynaton
1355:Hunting
1294:Bladder
1217:Fatback
1168:Scalder
1128:As food
1091:Pannage
1075:Farming
1018:Family
994:Phylum
674:4 March
634:May 13,
425:author
417:Pegasus
413:Pigasus
408:Pigasus
353:Finnish
335:calends
307:adynata
276:Germany
186:Meaning
157:History
86:improve
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1590:Rasher
1419:Piglet
1299:Racing
1096:Toilet
1030:Genus
1026:Suinae
1020:Suidae
1006:Order
1000:Class
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878:13 May
857:13 May
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75:, but
1674:Other
1337:feral
1183:Blood
1133:Bacon
1067:Shows
1014:Suina
608:(PDF)
460:books
434:motto
401:Egypt
272:Nazis
221:Usage
1461:Babe
1335:and
1333:Wild
1282:Tail
1257:Ribs
1247:Loin
1201:Cuts
1158:Pork
1153:Lard
978:Pigs
941:1925
880:2017
859:2017
831:ISBN
804:ISBN
777:ISBN
730:2023
704:2023
676:2020
636:2009
542:2018
446:alas
442:alia
1304:War
1277:Ear
1148:Ham
1086:Sty
1033:Sus
937:RFC
450:per
391:" (
351:In
215:pig
148:so
144:—a
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