allusion

American  

[uh-loo-zhuhn] / əˈlu ʒən /

noun

1. a passing or casual reference; an incidental mention of something, either directly or by implication.

   The novel's title is an allusion to Shakespeare.

2. the act of alluding; the making of a casual or indirect reference to something.

   The Bible is a fertile source of allusion in art.

3. Obsolete.  a metaphor or parable.

---

allusion British  

/ əˈluːʒən /

noun

1. the act of alluding

2. a passing reference; oblique or obscure mention

---

allusion Cultural  

1. 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.

---

Other Word Forms

• preallusion noun

Etymology

Origin of allusion

First recorded in 1540–50; Late Latin allūsiōn- (stem of allūsiō ), equivalent to allūs(us), past participle of allūdere ( allude; al- + lūd- “play” + -tus past participle suffix) + -iōn- -ion

Example Sentences

We see how many people he kills within the show, but there’s an allusion to more in his past.

From Los Angeles Times

One of the pleasures here is witnessing both actors reanimate the rhythms of a long-ago conversation, their text absent the typical tidiness of a screenplay and instead an interwoven network of inflection, attitude, allusion.

From The Wall Street Journal

"A 10-year-old child who doesn't understand a joke or an allusion, it's not a big deal. They will understand it at 15, 20, or 40 years old. There are several levels of interpretation."

From Barron's

The allusion to economic justifications for the Confederacy’s inhumane cruelty is mocked and transformed, while also implying the process as Black reparation.

From Los Angeles Times

And despite the fact that the story plays out less than 15 years after the end of World War II, there isn’t a single allusion to the war’s impact on the country.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• quotation