allusion
a passing or casual reference; an incidental mention of something, either directly or by implication: The novel's title is an allusion to Shakespeare.
the act of alluding; the making of a casual or indirect reference to something: The Bible is a fertile source of allusion in art.
Obsolete. a metaphor or parable.
Origin of allusion
1Other words from allusion
- pre·al·lu·sion, noun
Words that may be confused with allusion
Words Nearby allusion
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use allusion in a sentence
His deep love of literature is evident in his artworks, which still include fragments of text, as well as photographs of favorite writers and layers of literary allusions.
Peter Sacks is one of the most compelling artists in America. But he didn’t find his voice until late in life. | Sebastian Smee | March 5, 2021 | Washington PostIt’s a rich and vibrant story about love and sin and redemption, laced through with allusions to everything from Peter’s denial of Christ to the none pizza with left beef meme.
How Gideon the Ninth author Tamsyn Muir queers the space opera | Constance Grady | February 5, 2021 | VoxThere’s biblical allusion that I haven’t even begun to mine.
How Gideon the Ninth author Tamsyn Muir queers the space opera | Constance Grady | February 5, 2021 | VoxThe preacher sprinkles his calls for affordable health care with Biblical allusions, reminding voters that Bartimaeus, a blind man healed by Jesus in the Gospel of Mark, “suffered from a preexisting condition.”
Raphael Warnock’s campaign for the moral high ground | Clyde McGrady | January 2, 2021 | Washington PostBy engineering standards, the Pompidou is far less practical than many buildings that make no allusion to Meccano.
Toys Are the Future of Philosophy - Issue 93: Forerunners | Jonathon Keats | December 9, 2020 | Nautilus
The definition of “innuendo,” according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, is “an oblique allusion.”
Bill Cosby’s Long List of Accusers (So Far): 18 Alleged Sexual Assault Victims Between 1965-2004 | Marlow Stern | November 24, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTOne interpretation suggests he is the embodiment of whisky, a lewd allusion to a tenured tradition of Scottish alcoholism.
Scotland’s ‘Yes’ Campaign and the Myth of Scottish Equality | Noah Caldwell | September 18, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTFrom Cyrus on, however, it was all, to borrow another Biblical allusion, fire and brimstone.
And near the end of the play, Seguin offered an allusion to Fiddler on the Roof, yelling, “Sunrise, sunset!”
Chaz Bono’s ‘Independence Day’: Strippers, Racism & More Crazy Moments | Anna Klassen | June 25, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTI never miss a chance to make an allusion to their similarity.
‘Mad Men’ Creator Matthew Weiner on the Season Finale | Jace Lacob | June 24, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTWith every allusion that Ramona made to the saints' statues, Alessandro's desire to procure one for her deepened.
Ramona | Helen Hunt JacksonThe words are very old, and conveyed a certain religious and political allusion.
The story of Longius is very common; hence Chaucer readily introduced an allusion to it, though his original has no hint of it.
Chaucer's Works, Volume 1 (of 7) -- Romaunt of the Rose; Minor Poems | Geoffrey ChaucerThere are some other survivals in man of ancient structures to which a passing allusion must suffice.
Man And His Ancestor | Charles MorrisThere is an obvious allusion in this line to the common proverb—'As fain as fowl of a fair morrow,' which is quoted in the Kn.
Chaucer's Works, Volume 1 (of 7) -- Romaunt of the Rose; Minor Poems | Geoffrey Chaucer
British Dictionary definitions for allusion
/ (əˈluːʒən) /
the act of alluding
a passing reference; oblique or obscure mention
Origin of allusion
1Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Cultural definitions for allusion
An indirect reference to some piece of knowledge not actually mentioned. Allusions usually come from a body of information that the author presumes the reader will know. For example, an author who writes, “She was another Helen,” is alluding to the proverbial beauty of Helen of Troy.
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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