as in fairy
an imaginary being usually having a small human form and magical powers
elves are often portrayed as rather mischievous
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Recent Examples of elf
This offbeat fantasy road movie centers on two elf brothers (Chris Pratt and Tom Holland) traveling with their dead dad's sentient legs – and learning to say goodbye to him in the process.
—
Brian Truitt, USA Today, 21 June 2025
Thor: The Dark World' (2013) Chris Hemsworth’s thunder god has a sequel that’s a blender of familiar fantasy tropes as Thor and love interest Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) have to deal with a dark elf with an Infinity Stone.
—Brian Truitt, USA Today, 25 July 2025
In contrast, Tolkien imagined elves as elegant and refined, while humans had the capacity to be as barbaric as orcs, or as noble as elves.
—Dani Di Placido, Forbes.com, 7 July 2025
No one wants to send a work email while tucked into a Tyrolean trundle bed like a Christmas elf.
—Elise Taylor, Vogue, 25 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for elf
Brian Truitt, USA Today, 21 June 2025
Thor: The Dark World' (2013) Chris Hemsworth’s thunder god has a sequel that’s a blender of familiar fantasy tropes as Thor and love interest Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) have to deal with a dark elf with an Infinity Stone.
—Brian Truitt, USA Today, 25 July 2025
In contrast, Tolkien imagined elves as elegant and refined, while humans had the capacity to be as barbaric as orcs, or as noble as elves.
—Dani Di Placido, Forbes.com, 7 July 2025
No one wants to send a work email while tucked into a Tyrolean trundle bed like a Christmas elf.
—Elise Taylor, Vogue, 25 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for elf
Recent Examples of Synonyms for elf
Noun
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Monster cats, women with ravenous mouths in the back of their heads, mountain goblins, mermaids with carp bodies, foxes that transform into samurai messengers—the list goes on.—
Katherine Larson
July 16,
Literary Hub,
16 July 2025
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In fact, Bolg is the name of a goblin prince from J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit.—
Margherita Bassi,
Smithsonian Magazine,
20 June 2025
Noun
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Tell me a little bit about the technical side of filming a dwarf and an elf together.—
Devan Coggan,
EW.com,
13 Oct. 2022
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Other new characters include Disa, the first female dwarf ever shown in the Lord of the Rings series.—
Ethan Millman,
Rolling Stone,
22 July 2022
Noun
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For instance, people used to hang iron on their doors at night to keep faeries and demons out of their homes (talismans) and a knock on the door in the middle of the night was to be ignored, for surely some evil spirit was lurking outside.—
Erik Kain,
Forbes,
27 Nov. 2024
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The Unseelie Court is the bastion of malevolent faeries who harm humans for their amusement or to exact revenge.—
Erik Kain,
Forbes,
27 Nov. 2024
Cite this Entry
“Elf.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/elf. Accessed 22 Aug. 2025.
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