noun
elephant
EH-lih-fuhnt
noun
1
A very large mammal with a long trunk, big ears, and tusks, native to Africa and Asia.
"The elephant used its trunk to spray water over its back."
"African elephants have much bigger ears than Asian elephants."
2
Something enormous or unwieldy, used figuratively.
"Nobody wanted to mention the elephant in the room: the company was about to go bankrupt."
How to Use Elephant
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishThe largest living land animal, known for its trunk and tusks — or, figuratively, an obvious problem everyone is avoiding.
Memory tip
"The elephant in the room" means an obvious issue that everyone notices but avoids talking about.
Trace the full origin ↓
Common pairings
elephant in the room
herd of elephants
elephant tusk
Word Forms
elephants plural
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The _____ used its trunk to spray water over its back.
Etymology
From Old French elefant, ultimately from Ancient Greek elephas ("elephant, ivory"), possibly borrowed from an ancient North African language.