as in illusory
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Recent Examples of illusive
There is nothing wrong with wanting to be in communication or to lurk on their pages — especially when Venus retrograde links up with illusive Neptune on March 27th.
—
Lisa Stardust, refinery29.com, 27 Feb. 2025
The month wraps up with a very special cosmic event, as illusive and intuitive Neptune will leave your sign for the first time in nearly 15 years, ingressing into fiery Aries.
—Nina Kahn, StyleCaster, 24 Feb. 2025
The ever-illusive Banksy, whose real identity remains a mystery, was not always so secretive, reveals the BBC.
—The Editors Of Artnews, ARTnews.com, 16 Jan. 2025
Howl, an illusive magic-user, takes over the cooking from Sophie, placing bacon in the pan and feeding egg shells to Calcifer, who happily munches away on the detritus.
—Eliana Dockterman, TIME, 21 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for illusive
Lisa Stardust, refinery29.com, 27 Feb. 2025
The month wraps up with a very special cosmic event, as illusive and intuitive Neptune will leave your sign for the first time in nearly 15 years, ingressing into fiery Aries.
—Nina Kahn, StyleCaster, 24 Feb. 2025
The ever-illusive Banksy, whose real identity remains a mystery, was not always so secretive, reveals the BBC.
—The Editors Of Artnews, ARTnews.com, 16 Jan. 2025
Howl, an illusive magic-user, takes over the cooking from Sophie, placing bacon in the pan and feeding egg shells to Calcifer, who happily munches away on the detritus.
—Eliana Dockterman, TIME, 21 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for illusive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for illusive
Adjective
-
Trump’s pursuit of an illusory sphere of influence is unlikely to bring us peace or prosperity—any more than the invasion of Ukraine brought peace and prosperity to Russians—and this might become clear sooner than anyone expects.—
Anne Applebaum,
The Atlantic,
5 Jan. 2026
-
Time may be an absolute, but our measurements of it are illusory.—
Christian Wiman,
Harpers Magazine,
30 Dec. 2025
Adjective
-
Under the noonday sun while fishing, or stealing light from the full moon, the point of his pencil traced the imaginary movements of the washers, threads, coil springs, cylinders, bolts, and screws that had long enriched the workings of his mind.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
12 Jan. 2026
-
Torgashev dropped an imaginary microphone for his ending pose, then doubled over before dropping to a knee as the crowd rose to its feet.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
11 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
This isn’t callousness or delusive optimism but, rather, a rebellion against the suffocating expectation that the elderly have foreclosed the possibility of joy.—
Hillary Kelly,
The New Yorker,
21 Feb. 2024
-
To separate art from its historical framework is futile, and to reject it in an effort to censor past violence is a delusive act of virtue signaling.—
WSJ,
WSJ,
5 July 2022
Adjective
-
Gumihos are mythical, fox-like creatures out of Korean folklore known for their nine tails, deceptive behavior, and magical powers.—
Kayti Burt,
Time,
14 Jan. 2026
-
There was a bill introduced last legislative session that would have empowered citizens to sue for allegedly deceptive practices, fraud, harassment, intimidation or misrepresentation during the acquisition of land access agreements by carbon pipeline land agents.—
Meghan O’Brien,
States Newsroom,
13 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
At the most obvious level, of course.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
14 Jan. 2026
-
But her agent at GSE Worldwide represents all three of the other FP Movement tennis players, Sloane Stephens, Danielle Collins, and Sofia Kenin, which made for an easy and obvious transition.—
Jessica Schiffer,
Vogue,
14 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
The region’s North African influences (Tunisia lies just across the coast) are acutely manifest in its cuisine—San Vito Lo Capo hosts an annual couscous festival and chickpea fritters, pistachios, and spices such as saffron and cinnamon feature across many of its restaurants’ menus.—
Rosalyn Wikeley,
Condé Nast Traveler,
12 Jan. 2026
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This seems unexceptionable today, when even popular language columnists, such as the Times’ John McWhorter, are manifest descriptivists.—
Louis Menand,
New Yorker,
22 Dec. 2025
Adjective
-
Experts immediately pointed out that Hassett had used a misleading method known as a cubic fit to make the mortality data appear less frightening.—
Rogé Karma,
The Atlantic,
7 Jan. 2026
-
For its misleading omissions, the Times story deserves a flunking grade.—
Orlando Sentinel,
The Orlando Sentinel,
7 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
That is delusory of course, but it can be fashioned into a victory claim that might well be readily embraced by war-weary and war-wary Russians in the public and among the elite.—
John Mueller,
Foreign Affairs,
29 Nov. 2022
Cite this Entry
“Illusive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/illusive. Accessed 18 Jan. 2026.
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