The idiom “wild goose chase” means a futile activity, but has nothing to do with geese. It originated from a horse race in 16th century England, where horses followed a leader in a formation resembling geese. Shakespeare used it metaphorically in Romeo and Juliet. The term “greylag hunt” was a backformation. The idiom survived in modern English and can refer to searching for anything, but is generally frustrating.
A wild goose hunt is an activity that is likely to prove futile and unsuccessful, as in “we did a wild goose hunt for the antique store you told us about, but couldn’t find it.” This English idiom has been used since the 16th century, with the first recorded use occurring in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. It might surprise you to learn that it actually has nothing to do with wild geese, despite the name.
This slang term refers to a type of horse racing that was popular in parts of England in the 16th century. In this race, the herd of horses followed a leader, often adopting a formation that coincidentally resembled a flock of geese. This was extremely challenging and punters have often commented that it was difficult to predict the outcome of a wild goose hunt, let alone profit from it.
When Shakespeare used it, he meant it metaphorically, referring to one of Romeo’s extravagant plans as a “wild goose chase,” meaning that Romeo was embarking on an adventure that was likely to prove futile. He referred to this as a situation where a person sets a path that is difficult to follow, exactly like the lead horse in a wild goose chase. As was often the case with colorful words and idioms in Shakespeare’s work, the slang term was picked up by the general population.
Several 18th-century dictionaries suggest that a greylag hunt is directly related to greylag hunting, using the difficulty of handling and herding geese as an explanation for this idiom. This illustrates an example of backformation, where people invent an origin for a word or phrase to find an explanation that makes sense to them, rather than researching the actual root of the idiom or word.
Wild goose hunting in the sense of a horse race no longer occurs, but the idiom survived in modern English. You can hunt for a particular place, person or object, or for more abstract concepts such as information and ideas. Many people can think of a few examples that they have been guided by, both literally and figuratively. Either way, people generally find it a frustrating waste of time.
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