illusory

[ ih-loo-suh-ree, -zuh- ]
/ ɪˈlu sə ri, -zə- /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR illusory ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

causing illusion; deceptive; misleading.
of the nature of an illusion; unreal.

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Origin of illusory

1590–1600; < Late Latin illūsōrius, equivalent to illūd(ere) to mock, ridicule (see illusion) + -tōrius -tory1

OTHER WORDS FROM illusory

il·lu·so·ri·ly, adverbil·lu·so·ri·ness, nounun·il·lu·so·ry, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH illusory

elusive illusory

Words nearby illusory

illusion, illusionary, illusionism, illusionist, illusive, illusory, illust., illustrate, illustrated, illustration, illustrational
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Words related to illusory

hallucinatory, whimsical, unreal, misleading, false, apparent, chimerical, deceitful, delusive, fallacious, fanciful, fantastic, fictitious, float, ideal, illusive, imaginary, mistaken, ostensible, seeming

Example sentences from the Web for illusory

British Dictionary definitions for illusory

illusory

illusive (ɪˈluːsɪv)

/ (ɪˈluːsərɪ) /

adjective

producing, produced by, or based on illusion; deceptive or unreal

Derived forms of illusory

illusorily or illusively, adverbillusoriness or illusiveness, noun

usage for illusory

Illusive is sometimes wrongly used where elusive is meant: they fought hard, but victory remained elusive (not illusive)
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012