One who builds castles; commonly, one who builds castles in the air (see CASTLE sb. 11), a day-dreamer, a visionary schemer.
1711. Steele, Spect., No. 167, ¶ 3. One of that Species of Men … denominated Castle-Builders, who scorn to be beholden to the Earth for a Foundation.
1822. W. Irving, Braceb. Hall, II. 36. I have been always something of a castle-builder.
1873. Symonds, Grk. Poets, xi. 376. All day-dreamers and castle-builders.
So Castle-building vbl. sb. and ppl. a.; Castle-built ppl. a.
1740. Cheyne, Regim., Pref. 7. Enthusiasm, Romanceing, and Castle-building.
1750. Student, I. 223 (T.). Castle-building, or the science of aerial architecture.
1833. Ht. Martineau, Berkeley the Banker, I. i. 11. The castle-building father bestowed almost all his thoughts for the next half-hour on the new rector.
1836–7. Sir W. Hamilton, Metaph., xxxiii. (1859), II. 272. Reverie or Castle-building, is a kind of waking dream.
1841. Orderson, Creoleana, xx. 242. Castle-built schemes.
1850. Kingsley, Alt. Locke, xxvi. 191. As I lay castle-building.
