merry dance

plural merry dances

1. idiomaticA useless waste of time resulting from a deception.

   The children led us on a merry dance with their stories of strangers and shadows in the night.

   2 more examples

   "That's what happened to me the last time you fired a high snowball. Peaches. That's why I didn't want you to try another while I'm around. You wait until I'm off the campus if you've got to indulge in high jinks. Come on now, fellows, since Peaches has promised to behave himself, let the merry dance go on. Have you tried a shot, Joe? Or you, Sister," and Teeter looked at the newcomers.

   1912, Stratemeyer Syndicate, chapter 1, in Baseball Joe on the School Nine

   Argentine defender Martinez, normally so reliable and combative, was taken apart, especially when Salah led him a merry dance to set up Gakpo to settle the game with Liverpool's third five minutes after half-time.

   2023 March 5, Phil McNulty, “Liverpool 7-0 Manchester United”, in BBC Sport

   Synonyms: merry chase, wild-goose chase