Alice in Wonderland

English

Etymology

Derived from the children's fantasy story, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.

Adjective

Alice in Wonderland (comparative more Alice in Wonderland, superlative most Alice in Wonderland)

1. As in a surreal fairy tale where things work at odds to the way they do in the real world.
   • 2011 A. Bowdoin Van Riper, Learning from Mickey, Donald and Walt, p. 120:

     After the creature recites the value of pi—erroneously, as it turns out—its mouth disappears and it splits back into separate geometric shapes. It's an Alice-in-Wonderland moment, to be sure.

   • 2007, Anthony Wade, The Adventures of an Economic Migrant, p. 24:

     The overall journey was, like an Alice in Wonderland tale, unfolding with each succeeding discovery as fascinating as the one before.

   • 2002, Richard Leakey, Virginia Morell, Wildlife Wars: My Fight to Save Africa's Natural Treasures, p. 273:

     It was as if I was in some kind of Alice in Wonderland world, in which all you had to do was utter something to make it so.

   • 2001, Phil Gramm, Congressional Record-Senate, March 29, 2001, p. 5053:

     What makes this debate an Alice in Wonderland debate is that the people who support this bill are the very people who will benefit from taking the American people out of the debate by limiting the ability of people to put up their time.

   • 1992, Network World, Sep 7, 1992, Vol. 9, No. 36, p. 37:

     IBM's current system and network management story has an Alice in Wonderland touch to it, with incongruity as the prevailing theme. Just as it is in Wonderland, most things in IBM's management story are not what they appear to be.

   • 1987, Acres, U.S.A.: Volume 6 :

     The law-making affair often has an Alice in Wonderland touch. Terms are defined by law, and if the law says black is white, then for the purpose of the law, black it white.

   • 1978: Popular Mechanics, Apr 1978, Vol. 149, No. 4, p. 204:

     It is an Alice in Wonderland question. Let me answer it this way: To design a car, you must — emphasize must — have restrictions to guide you.

See also

• Alice in Wonderland syndrome
• caucus race
• Cheshire cat
• rabbit hole
• mad hatter

Translations

Translations

Spanish: de Alicia en el mundo de maravillas (es)