variants
or elliptic
1
as in cryptic
having an often intentionally veiled or uncertain meaning
the poet's elliptical style is such that the reader often senses that an allusion is being made—but to what exactly?
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
3
as in concise
marked by the use of few words to convey much information or meaning
his elliptical replies can seem rude to some people, but that's just his way
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of elliptical
For a more active approach to wellbeing, the second-floor gym offers treadmills, elliptical machines, and weight-training equipment, and hosts yoga and pilates sessions.
—
Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 2 Apr. 2026
The orbit adjustments are designed to put the astronauts in a highly elliptical 24-hour-long orbit, giving them plenty of time to check out the Orion capsule, making sure the ship's communications, navigation, propulsion and life support systems are working properly before heading to the moon.
—Miles Doran, CBS News, 1 Apr. 2026
Orion will spend 90-minutes in its initial orbit, before the second stage fires its engines twice to send Orion to a high Earth elliptical orbit.
—Mary Kekatos, ABC News, 1 Apr. 2026
Within the first few hours after liftoff, the crew will ignite the ICPS engine for a pair of burns to place the spacecraft in a high elliptical orbit.
—Josh Dinner, Space.com, 31 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for elliptical
Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 2 Apr. 2026
The orbit adjustments are designed to put the astronauts in a highly elliptical 24-hour-long orbit, giving them plenty of time to check out the Orion capsule, making sure the ship's communications, navigation, propulsion and life support systems are working properly before heading to the moon.
—Miles Doran, CBS News, 1 Apr. 2026
Orion will spend 90-minutes in its initial orbit, before the second stage fires its engines twice to send Orion to a high Earth elliptical orbit.
—Mary Kekatos, ABC News, 1 Apr. 2026
Within the first few hours after liftoff, the crew will ignite the ICPS engine for a pair of burns to place the spacecraft in a high elliptical orbit.
—Josh Dinner, Space.com, 31 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for elliptical
Recent Examples of Synonyms for elliptical
Adjective
-
Simultaneously, the solo careers of fellow Pornographers Neko Case and Dan Bejar had begun to take flight—Case as maybe the greatest country torch singer of her generation, and Bejar in his cryptic Leonard Cohen-adjacent auteur mode as Destroyer.—
Elizabeth Nelson,
Pitchfork,
8 Apr. 2026
-
There’s a mysterious new leader of EON (ExtraOrdinary Observation and Neutralization), according to a cryptic summary.—
Entertainment Weekly,
Entertainment Weekly,
3 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
The ring features a 12-carat, oval Ceylon sapphire at its center surrounded by a halo of 14 diamonds set in 18k white gold—by anyone’s eye, a beautiful piece.—
Rachel Burchfield,
InStyle,
9 Mar. 2026
-
Oval Glass Doors That front door with an oval glass inset?—
Angelika Pokovba,
Martha Stewart,
22 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Fuentes offers a more concise gloss.—
Antonia Hitchens,
New Yorker,
6 Apr. 2026
-
Guidance should be timely, concise, and delivered in plain language.—
Charles J. Lockwood,
STAT,
31 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Obliterated it, which is not an ambiguous term.—
Brian Dakss,
CBS News,
11 Apr. 2026
-
Samuel Dic Sum Lai, a PhD candidate at the University of London, has dedicated his studies to chronicling the ambiguous history and culture of these restaurants.—
Sam Stone,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
9 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
There was a brief ceasefire in the country that year, but it was brokered by the United Nations, not Epstein.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
8 Apr. 2026
-
Three current council members, including Hillary Shields, congratulated Lopez in brief remarks at his party.—
Nathan Pilling,
Kansas City Star,
8 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Sunscreen protects against sun damage, premature aging and dark spots.—
Lauren Jarvis-Gibson,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
8 Apr. 2026
-
Harden, 36, with his famous, protruding beard and those dark, piercing eyes, was determined to use his star power to get his way, to bring with him a slice of comfort to a new city.—
Joe Vardon,
New York Times,
7 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Such rights obviously do not include summary execution at sea.—
Mary Ellen O'Connell,
The Conversation,
4 Sep. 2025
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Not surprisingly, given the risk of summary execution, many had initial doubts.—
Yossi Melman,
ProPublica,
7 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
That 300-work show built on Walter Hopps’s legendary exhibition for the Pasadena Art Museum—held in 1963, at a time when Duchamp was still relatively obscure—and solidified the artist’s place in the canon.—
Alex Greenberger,
ARTnews.com,
8 Apr. 2026
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Piecing together information on Kia and the circumstance of his obscure death is difficult, but two weeks ago his mother said in a short clip that he was killed in an attack.—
Mostafa Salem,
CNN Money,
7 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Elliptical.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/elliptical. Accessed 13 Apr. 2026.
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