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Tilt at windmills

verb

Definitions

Verb
  1. 1
    To attack imaginary enemies. idiomatic, intransitive
  2. 2
    To go on a wild-goose chase; to persistently engage in a futile activity. broadly, idiomatic, intransitive

Etymology

From a passage in the novel Don Quixote where the eponymous character tilts (i.e. jousts) at windmills that he has mistaken for giants.

See also for "tilt at windmills"

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