Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of delusive
First recorded in 1595–1605; delus(ion) + -ive
Explanation
If you are a C student, and your guidance counselor tells you to apply to MIT and Harvard, his advice may be delusive, or not based in fact, giving a false impression. Your delusive hopes might tempt you to look away from reality, but if you believe delusive statements, you are deluded. What you believe in might be called a delusion. All of these words come from the Latin deludere which means "to play false, deceive." Also related to this word: Ludicrous. When you fall for a delusive idea, you are sometimes seen as ludicrous.
Vocabulary lists containing delusive
"Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death" by Patrick Henry (1775)
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Speech to the Virginia Convention
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A Vindication of the Rights of Woman
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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.
Of all the pow'rs of Heav'n, my mother most Hath wrong'd me, who hath buoy'd me up with hope Delusive, that, before the walls of Troy, I should by Phoebus' swift-wing'd arrows fall.
From The Iliad by Derby, Edward George Geoffrey Smith Stanley, Earl of
Canst thou not cease, inventive as thou art And subtle, from the wiles which thou hast lov’d Since thou wast infant, and from tricks of speech 350 Delusive, even in thy native land?
From The Odyssey of Homer by Cowper, William
Delusive hopes that lure the common herd With promises of ease, the heart's desire, In shadows, dreams, and smoke ye always end.
From The History of Don Quixote, Volume 1, Part 18 by Ormsby, John
Delusive hopes that lure the common herd With promises of ease, the heart's desire, In shadows, dreams, and smoke ye always end.
From Don Quixote by Ormsby, John
She would sit and weep At what a sailor suffers; fancy, too, Delusive most where warmest wishes are, Would oft anticipate his glad return.
From The Mirror of Literature, Amusement, and Instruction Volume 10, No. 272, September 8, 1827 by Various
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.
