elude
Americanverb (used with object)
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eludes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
eluded,
past participle, past
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eluding
present participle
verb
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to escape or avoid (capture, one's pursuers, etc), esp by cunning
-
to avoid fulfilment of (a responsibility, obligation, etc); evade
-
to escape discovery, or understanding by; baffle
the solution eluded her
Usage
Elude is sometimes wrongly used where allude is meant: he was alluding (not eluding) to his previous visit to the city
Synonym Usage
See escape.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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eludesimple
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eludessimple
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have eludedperfect
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has eludedperfect
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am eludingprogressive
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are eludingprogressive
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is eludingprogressive
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have been eludingperfect progressive
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has been eludingperfect progressive
Past
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eludedsimple
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had eludedperfect
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was eludingprogressive
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were eludingprogressive
-
had been eludingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of elude
First recorded in 1530–40; from Latin ēlūdere “to deceive, evade,” equivalent to ē- “from, out of” + lūdere “to play, deceive”; see e- 1
Explanation
Elude means "evade or escape," like the way you might elude the other kids during a game of hide-and-seek. This word can also mean "to be hard to understand." No matter how hard you try, the finer points of quantum physics might elude you. Elude has a slippery feeling to it. You elude the police, math can elude you — and that yak you went to see on safari but never got a glimpse of, you might say that he has eluded you as well. Delude means "to deceive," and there are times when someone can both delude and elude you — like when the conman took your money and then escaped out the back door.
Vocabulary lists containing elude
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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The Outsiders
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Grade 9, List 1
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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.
See Examples For:
But the kind of attention even her lesser work with Wagoner enjoyed continued to elude her own material.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 25, 2026
Many new companies are designing their products to elude known constraints in defense workforce and supply chains.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 12, 2026
Alexander Zverev finally landed the Grand Slam title that threatened to elude him by overcoming Flavio Cobolli and his own nerves to win a tense French Open final in five sets.
From BBC ● Jun. 7, 2026
But for reasons that still elude scientists, this arrangement falls apart when seawater warms too much and the algae leave or are expelled.
From Barron's ● May 22, 2026
He had represented the limitless possibilities in us all by living his life, striving for those dreams that seemed to elude the neighborhood year after year.
From "Bodega Dreams" by Ernesto Quinonez
It’s also likely that the true extent and reach of these secret sponsorships still eludes us.
From Slate ● Jun. 27, 2026
Not every collection is a success: a delicate red-orange shrimp daintily eludes the suction tube, swirling its long antenna as it swims almost triumphantly beyond reach.
From Barron's ● Jan. 26, 2026
And despite his view of Nick’s new ambitions, Nelson invites him to a sort of dance-off, in a moment both playful and poignant; they can find communion in dance that eludes them whenever they talk.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 26, 2025
But if his dream eludes him — at least for now — Garfield is striving for something like acceptance, to give up the search for a moment and sit down where he is.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 17, 2024
And the enviable peace of which he speaks eludes me.
From "Into Thin Air" by Jon Krakauer
“Pluribus” star Rhea Seehorn finally won the best actress statues that long eluded her, and series creator Vince Gilligan scored a writing Emmy.
From Salon ● Sep. 15, 2026
He had eluded capture by setting up several camps in dense bush and despite several sightings by the public and on CCTV.
From Barron's ● Sep. 15, 2026
Those close to Healey argue that his emphasis this week on securing the economic growth which has eluded successive governments by spreading wealth around the country is a clear difference from Reeves.
From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2026
About the only significant milestone that eluded Stafford: A second Super Bowl title.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 10, 2026
Master’s plate was always the most rice-strewn, as if he ate distractedly so that the grains eluded his fork.
From "Half of a Yellow Sun" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
This is an example of what Tuchel was likely eluding to when using the word "sloppy".
From BBC ● Jul. 12, 2026
But eluding the music of rock royalty is no easy task.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 6, 2026
Peddemors netted again with a cross that found its way in after eluding several players before Beerensteyn rifled in from distance to double Wolfsburg's lead.
From Barron's ● Nov. 19, 2025
Daniel Andreas San Diego, 46, who was arrested in Wales with assistance from British authorities, was placed on the FBI’s Most Wanted Terrorist List in 2009 after eluding capture.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 26, 2024
It’s not clear why, during Bobby’s years eluding American authorities, his sister and her family didn’t visit him in Europe; his mother, however, had visited him once in Budapest.
From "Endgame" by Frank Brady
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.
