Synonyms for elusive
ɪˈlu sɪv; -sə ri, -zə-elu·sive

Princeton's WordNetRate these synonyms:5.0 / 1 vote

1. elusiveadjective

   difficult to describe

   "a haunting elusive odor"

   Synonyms:
   tough, knotty, problematical, subtle, baffling, problematic

   Antonyms:
   palpable, easy, tangible, identifiable, artless

2. elusiveadjective

   skillful at eluding capture

   "a cabal of conspirators, each more elusive than the archterrorist"- David Kline

   Synonyms:
   tough, knotty, problematical, subtle, baffling, problematic

   Antonyms:
   palpable, artless, identifiable, tangible, easy

3. elusive, subtleadjective

   difficult to detect or grasp by the mind or analyze

   "his whole attitude had undergone a subtle change"; "a subtle difference"; "that elusive thing the soul"

   Synonyms:
   pernicious, baffling, problematic, knotty, tough, insidious, subtle, problematical

   Antonyms:
   easy, identifiable, artless, tangible, palpable

4. baffling, elusive, knotty, problematic, problematical, toughadjective

   making great mental demands; hard to comprehend or solve or believe

   "a baffling problem"; "I faced the knotty problem of what to have for breakfast"; "a problematic situation at home"

   Synonyms:
   subtle, gnarled, involved, knotty, problematical, debatable, ruffianly, bad, rugged, toughened, problematic, snarly, baffling, gnarly, hard, tangled, sturdy, knobbed, tough, knotted, tortuous, convoluted, snarled

   Antonyms:
   easy, palpable, tangible, identifiable, artless

Editors ContributionRate these synonyms:0.0 / 0 votes

1. escapability

   Submitted by rinat on August 15, 2019  

2. out of the grasp of

   happiness remains elusive until you look within.

   Submitted by dtravis on July 21, 2020  

Dictionary of English SynonymesRate these synonyms:5.0 / 2 votes

1. elusiveadjective

   Synonyms:
   evasive, ELUSORY

2. elusiveadjective

   Synonyms:
   equivocating, shuffling, equivocatory

PPDB, the paraphrase databaseRate these paraphrases:0.0 / 0 votes

1. List of paraphrases for "elusive":

   unattainable, illusive, distant, evasive, unfulfilled, indomitable, sly, inaccessible, imprecise, illusory, unrealized, difficult

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How to use elusive in a sentence?

1. The IEA:

   U.S. stocks may soon test storage capacity limits. That would inevitably lead to renewed price weakness, which in turn could trigger the supply cuts that have so far remained elusive, while the U.S. supply response to lower prices might take longer to kick in than expected, it might also prove more abrupt.

2. Gordon Wright Bates Jr.:

   Although the study adds considerable evidence to support lifestyle modifications and weight loss to optimize reproductive potential and the response to treatment, both of these remain elusive for many patients.

3. Muriel Spark:

   One's prime is elusive. You little girls, when you grow up, must be on the alert to recognize your prime at whatever time of your life it may occur. You must live it to the full.

4. Lao Tzu:

   It is the Vague and Elusive. Meet it and you will not see its head. Follow it and you will not see its back.

5. James Holmes:

   We are in a unique and unenviable position because we cry for James and we cry for thousands of people in Aurora, we cannot feel the depth of your pain. We can only listen to everything you have expressed, and we pray for you. We pray for your peace, your peace with the sentence. We pray for your ability to sleep at night, and your ability to find a single moment of happiness when that happiness seems completely elusive.