snipe hunt

• Broma o persecución sin sentido en la que se envía a una persona inexperta a buscar en vano una criatura inexistente; también se usa metafóricamente para referirse a cualquier tarea absurda o engañosa.

A practical joke or wild goose chase where an inexperienced person is sent on a futile search for a nonexistent creature, often used metaphorically to describe any pointless or deceptive pursuit.

1. A practical joke or wild goose chaseB2informalamerican

   A prank where an unsuspecting person is sent on a futile search for a non-existent creature (a snipe), often as a form of initiation or amusement.

   Búsqueda inútil o broma de caza de agachadizas

   • The camp counselors sent the new kid on a snipe hunt as a joke.
   • He realized it was a snipe hunt when he couldn't find any evidence of the bird.
   • Snipe hunts are a classic summer camp tradition.

2. A futile or impossible taskB2informalamerican

   Any activity that is pointless, impossible to achieve, or designed to waste someone's time.

   Búsqueda inútil

   • Trying to find a parking spot downtown on a Saturday is a snipe hunt.
   • The project turned out to be a snipe hunt; we never found the data we needed.
   • Don't send me on a snipe hunt for that outdated document.