Allusion
//əˈlu.ʒən// noun
noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level
Definitions
Noun
- 1 An indirect reference; a hint; a reference to something supposed to be known, but not explicitly mentioned. countable, uncountable
"I remember, before the Dwarf left the Queen, he followed us one day into thoſe gardens, and my Nurſe having ſet me down, he and I being cloſe together, near ſome Dwarf Apple trees, I muſt need ſhew my Wit, by a ſilly Alluſion between him and the Trees, which happens to hold in their Language as it doth in ours."
- 2 passing reference or indirect mention wordnet
Example
More examples"The allusion was not lost on me."
Etymology
From Latin allūsiōnem, accusative singular of allūsiō (“the act of playing with”), from allūdō (“play with; allude”), from al-, combining form of ad (“to”), + lūdō (“play”): compare French allusion.
More for "allusion"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.