as in slippery
hard to find, capture, or isolate
the giant squid is one of the ocean's most elusive inhabitants
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Recent Examples of elusive
Science: An undersea telescope that looks like something from a sci-fi film detected an elusive particle that could help explain a mystery of space.
—
Natasha Frost, New York Times, 13 Feb. 2025
Aquarius, Mercury is adding an elusive fog to your money sector, and suddenly, finances feel like a dream (or a nightmare).
—Valerie Mesa, People.com, 13 Feb. 2025
This is not the first time scientists have turned to eDNA to investigate elusive animals.
—Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 13 Feb. 2025
Of course, there’s every chance that this satellite experiment won’t detect dark matter either, but having more teams looking in more places will boost our odds of one day finding this elusive substance.
—Michael Irving, New Atlas, 12 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for elusive
Natasha Frost, New York Times, 13 Feb. 2025
Aquarius, Mercury is adding an elusive fog to your money sector, and suddenly, finances feel like a dream (or a nightmare).
—Valerie Mesa, People.com, 13 Feb. 2025
This is not the first time scientists have turned to eDNA to investigate elusive animals.
—Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 13 Feb. 2025
Of course, there’s every chance that this satellite experiment won’t detect dark matter either, but having more teams looking in more places will boost our odds of one day finding this elusive substance.
—Michael Irving, New Atlas, 12 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for elusive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for elusive
Adjective
-
Watch out for slippery roads: Be extra careful during the first half hour after rain begins.—
Bay Area Weather Report,
The Mercury News,
15 Feb. 2025
-
Mel Bochner, a conceptual artist who incisively explored the slippery relationship between language and art, died on February 12 at 84.—
Alex Greenberger,
ARTnews.com,
14 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
Revenue from the hotel room tax known as transient occupancy tax or TOT increased from $19.1 million to $19.7 million, or 3%.—
Phil Diehl,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
26 Feb. 2025
-
The environment, lifestyle changes, and short-term fluctuations such as transient illnesses or restless sleep impact that day and the following two weeks!—
Luciana Paulise,
Forbes,
25 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
According to witnesses and vehicle data, the teen didn’t brake or take evasive maneuvers in the seconds leading up to the crash.—
Olivia Lloyd,
Miami Herald,
20 Feb. 2025
-
Waldock and Cox both saw that as a clear evasive maneuver by the American Airlines pilot.—
Gary Fields,
Los Angeles Times,
15 Feb. 2025
Articles Related to elusive
Cite this Entry
“Elusive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/elusive. Accessed 4 Mar. 2025.
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