Dixie

slang To have a realistic or honest view of something, as opposed to an overly optimistic one. "Dixie" was a song popular among Confederate soldiers during the US Civil War and became associated with continuing to hope for the success of a lost cause. Primarily heard in US. It sounds like they really are going to give everyone a raise. You weren't just whistling Dixie, Bob!

slang To have an unrealistic, usually overly optimistic, view of something. "Dixie" was a song popular among Confederate soldiers during the US Civil War and became associated with continuing to hope for the success of a lost cause. Primarily heard in US. You're whistling Dixie if you think we're making the playoffs this year.

slang Having a realistic or honest view of something, as opposed to an overly optimistic one. "Dixie" was a song popular among Confederate soldiers during the US Civil War and became associated with continuing to hope for the success of a lost cause. It sounds like they really are going to give everyone a raise. You weren't just whistling Dixie, Bob!

slang To have an unrealistic, usually overly optimistic, view of something. "Dixie" was a song popular among Confederate soldiers during the US Civil War and became associated with continuing to hope for the success of a lost cause. Primarily heard in US. You're whistling Dixie if you think we're making the playoffs this year.

What you just said is absolutely true; you ain't kidding. "Dixie" was a song popular among Confederate soldiers during the US Civil War, eventually coming to represent idle chitchat, silly fantasies, or foolish nonsense. Primarily heard in US. A: "That storm looks like it could do some serious damage." B: "You ain't just whistling Dixie! We'd better get all the farm equipment stowed inside before it hits." A: "Hoo boy, these financial results are pretty grim." B: "You ain't whistlin' Dixie, Tom."

Rur. not talking nonsense. (Alludes to a song titled "Dixie.") Man, you are right! You're not just whistling Dixie. When you say she is wrong, you're not just whistling Dixie.

Rur. You are right. Tom: Sure is hot today. Bill: Yeah, you ain't just whistlin' Dixie. It's a scorcher. Charlie: That was a good movie. Jane: You ain't just whistlin' Dixie. It was the best I've ever seen.

Engage in unrealistic, hopeful fantasizing, as in If you think you can drive there in two hours, you're whistling Dixie. This idiom alludes to the song "Dixie" and the vain hope that the Confederacy, known as Dixie, would win the Civil War.

If someone is not whistling Dixie, they are being honest or realistic and should not be ignored. `Is that a threat?' — `I'm not just whistling Dixie.' He was not whistling Dixie last month when he told financial analysts that the firm is as competitive as ever. Note: Dixie was the name given to the region of the southern and eastern United States which formed the Confederate side in the Civil War. The area gave its name to several songs which were popular as Confederate war songs.

To engage in unrealistically rosy fantasizing: "If you think mass transportation is going to replace the automobile I think you're whistling Dixie" (Henry Ford II).

You said a mouthful. The origin of this expression has been lost, but it is generally thought to allude to the 1860 song “Dixie,” with words and music by Dan Emmett. Originally written for a minstrel show, it became famous as a Civil War marching song of the Confederacy, “Dixie” being a nickname for the South whose origin has also been lost. Allegedly General Pickett, just before he made his famous charge at Gettysburg, ordered that the song be played to bolster the morale of his troops. The saying presumably means that you’re not just whistling the marching song and mouthing empty words, but instead getting down to the actual combative meaning. See also you said a mouthful.