: tending to elude: such as
a
: tending to evade grasp or pursuit
elusive prey
b
: hard to comprehend or define
c
: hard to isolate or identify
elusively
adverb
elusiveness
noun
Examples of elusive in a Sentence
But for all their influence, D.C. lobbyists have failed to attain one elusive goal: public respect.
—
Franklin Foer, New Republic, 25 Mar. 2002
In truth, the ideal of wholly disinterested scholarship—in any field of research—will probably remain an elusive one.
—Henry Louis Gates, Jr., New York Times, 4 Apr. 1998
His meanings have been known to be elusive, which is why he appeals to pop cryptographers.
—Sarah Vowell, GQ, November 1998
This boson is so central to the state of physics today, so crucial to our final understanding of the structure of matter, yet so elusive, that I have given it a nickname: the God Particle.
—Leon Lederman et al., The God Particle, 1993
The truth may prove elusive.
the giant squid is one of the ocean's most elusive inhabitants
Franklin Foer, New Republic, 25 Mar. 2002
In truth, the ideal of wholly disinterested scholarship—in any field of research—will probably remain an elusive one.
—Henry Louis Gates, Jr., New York Times, 4 Apr. 1998
His meanings have been known to be elusive, which is why he appeals to pop cryptographers.
—Sarah Vowell, GQ, November 1998
This boson is so central to the state of physics today, so crucial to our final understanding of the structure of matter, yet so elusive, that I have given it a nickname: the God Particle.
—Leon Lederman et al., The God Particle, 1993
The truth may prove elusive.
the giant squid is one of the ocean's most elusive inhabitants
Recent Examples on the Web
First, the goal of leading an economically secure life in exchange for hard work has become more elusive.
—Mark Robert Rank, Fortune, 8 Feb. 2026
But beyond that, unity has proved elusive.
—Jacqueline Charles Miami Herald, Arkansas Online, 6 Feb. 2026
In the early 1980s physicists began planning for what would eventually become RHIC—a way to recreate that plasma and then hopefully settle the proton crises and pin down the most elusive force of nature.
—Joseph Howlett, Scientific American, 6 Feb. 2026
Hopefully, this approach will bring the postseason victories that have been so elusive for this franchise over the past two decades.
—Miami Herald, 6 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for elusive
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Mark Robert Rank, Fortune, 8 Feb. 2026
But beyond that, unity has proved elusive.
—Jacqueline Charles Miami Herald, Arkansas Online, 6 Feb. 2026
In the early 1980s physicists began planning for what would eventually become RHIC—a way to recreate that plasma and then hopefully settle the proton crises and pin down the most elusive force of nature.
—Joseph Howlett, Scientific American, 6 Feb. 2026
Hopefully, this approach will bring the postseason victories that have been so elusive for this franchise over the past two decades.
—Miami Herald, 6 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for elusive
Cite this Entry
“Elusive.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/elusive. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
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