paper airplane
n.— «The Secretary of the Air Force, Verne Orr, has asserted that the Stealth plane, which Secretary of Defense Caspar W. Weinberger is seriously considering as the nation’s next long-range bomber, is “a paper airplane” that is far from development.» —“Air Force Chief Calls The Stealth A ‘Paper Plane’ Far From Reality” by Richard Halloran New York Times July 23, 1981. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
A flashlight emits a steady beam of light. So what’s the flash part of that word about? Also, if you’re a nervous Nellie, you’re skittish and indecisive—both characteristics of an American politician who earned that nickname in the...
Sigrin writes from Albany, New York, that she misheard our earlier conversation about the expression shaving yak hair meaning “performing a monotonous, tedious task.” At first she thought we said shaving gnat hair, which she figures is...