THE FIRST WORD

fool's paradise

PRONUNCIATION:

(foolz PAR-uh-dys, -dyz) 

MEANING:

noun: A state of happiness based on false hopes.

ETYMOLOGY:

From English fool, from Latin follis (windbag, fool) + paradise, via French, Latin, and Greek, from Avestan pairidaeza (enclosure, park). Earliest documented use: 1462. Also see, fool's gold and fool's errand.

USAGE:

"She'd been living in a fool's paradise, hoping for his heart, for his ardor at least."
Diana Palmer; Noelle; Ivy Books; 1995.