# mistake windmills for giants

idiom

Source: https://englishreference.com/idiom/mistake-windmills-for-giants
Updated: 2026-08-10

## Meaning

To perceive ordinary, nonthreatening objects or situations as significant dangers or adversaries, often due to an overly romantic, idealistic, or deluded worldview.

## Examples

- You often mistake windmills for giants when you worry too much.
- He is so eager to find a conspiracy that he constantly mistakes windmills for giants in his daily life.
- By viewing every minor administrative change as a deliberate attack on his authority, the manager frequently mistakes windmills for giants.

## Origin

Something to do with Don Quixote...

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.