adjective
Usage
Illusive is sometimes wrongly used where elusive is meant: they fought hard, but victory remained elusive (not illusive )
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of illusory
1590–1600; < Late Latin illūsōrius, equivalent to illūd ( ere ) to mock, ridicule ( see illusion) + -tōrius -tory 1
Explanation
If something is based on something that is not real, you can say it is illusory. Tales of seeing Elvis and Big Foot eating together at McDonalds are probably based on an illusory experience. Although the adjective illusory can describe anything that's based on an illusion, it often has the negative connotation of being deliberately deceptive. Like a bogus investment scheme that seems to make money for investors: any real profits are totally illusory. Or the illusory claims that fad diets work — they only work while you're on the diet, and no one can survive on cabbage soup forever.
Vocabulary lists containing illusory
"Magic and the Brain," Vocabulary from the magazine article
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Holi Festival
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Orphan Train
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Fast Company this week also published an excerpt from his book, titled “Autonorama: The Illusory Promise of High-Tech Driving.”
From New York Times • Nov. 3, 2021
Illusory superiority and unjustified hubris are deeply rooted in human nature.
From Scientific American • Oct. 2, 2021
Illusory kinesthesia is performed with the palms pressed together.
From The Wall Street Journal • Sep. 21, 2015
Illusory perception pervades every aspect of life, including, unfortunately, courts of law, where decisions are meant to be blind and unbiased.
From Scientific American • Jul. 21, 2015
Illusory provisions were made to protect the rights of tenants, but nothing at all effectual was done till the passing of Act x of 1859, which has been largely modified by later legislation.
From Rambles and Recollections of an Indian Official by Sleeman, William
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
