World Languages Lexicon
10 Language-to-English DictionariesElusive
/ɪˈluː.sɪv/Comprehensive Definitions & Senses
2 senses- 1
Difficult to find, catch, or achieve.
"The elusive suspect managed to slip through the police blockade once again." - 2
Difficult to remember, recall, or define clearly.
"He had an elusive memory of the lullaby his mother used to sing."
Thesaurus & Semantic Spectrum
Linguistic Origin & Historical Etymology
Derived from the Latin 'elusivus', from 'eludere' meaning to elude or mock, formed from 'ex-' (out) and 'ludere' (to play). Entering English in the early 17th century, the term originally retained a sense of mocking evasion before shifting to describe anything difficult to find, catch, or achieve.
Which of the following is the closest synonym for "Elusive"?
10 Global Lexicons: How "Elusive" is said worldwide
Click any language below to open its dedicated Language to English dictionary page with native script & transliteration
insaisissable
Transliteration: ẽ.sɛ.zi.sabl
"Le bonheur est souvent un sentiment insaisissable."
elfrisch
Transliteration: ɛlˈfʁɪʃ
Script: schwer fassbar
"Die Ursache des Problems blieb schwer fassbar."
elusivo
Transliteration: e.luˈzi.vo
"La risposta del politico è stata molto elusiva."
elusivo
Transliteration: e.luˈsi.βo
"El éxito comercial sigue siendo esquivo para la empresa."
elusivo
Transliteration: e.luˈzi.vu
"A resposta para o enigma permaneceu elusiva."
मायावी
Transliteration: mayavi
"सफलता एक मायावी लक्ष्य की तरह प्रतीत होती है।"
高深得
Transliteration: gāoshén de
"这个概念非常高深得让人难以捉摸。"
잡기 힘든
Transliteration: jap-gi him-deun
"진실은 언제나 잡기 힘든 법이다."
掴みどころのない
Transliteration: tsukamidokoro no nai
"彼の人柄はどこか掴みどころがない。"
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