Meaning & use
elude
Last updated
UK/ɪˈluːd/
US/ɪˈluːd/
Meanings
verbtransitive
To escape from or avoid someone or something cleverly.
Grammar: Takes an object: elude capture.
Patterns
- elude someone
- elude capture
The thief eluded the police for weeks.
The fox eluded the hunters.
She eluded his grasp.
verbtransitive
To be impossible to understand, remember or achieve.
Grammar: The thing is the subject: the word eludes me.
Patterns
- something eludes someone
His name eludes me.
Success eluded her for years.
The meaning eludes most readers.
Word forms
| third person singular | eludes |
|---|---|
| past tense | eluded |
| past participle | eluded |
| -ing form | eluding |
Common combinations
- elude capture
- He eluded capture.
- elude detection
- The virus eluded detection.
- elude someone
- The answer eludes me.
- narrowly elude
- They narrowly eluded the storm.
Synonyms and how they differ
- evade
- Avoid something, often unfairly.
- escape
- General, plain.
- dodge
- Informal.
- baffle
- Confuse; only the understanding sense.
Opposites
Word family
- elusive adjective
- hard to find or catch
- elusiveness noun
- the quality of being hard to catch
Commonly confused: elude or allude?
elude vs allude
Allude means mention indirectly; elude means escape.
Practice
The suspect managed to ___ the police for three weeks.
Choose one answer.
Elude means escape from. Allude means hint at.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “elude”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.
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