See elephant in the room in All languages combined, or Wiktionary
Download JSON data for elephant in the room meaning in English (7.0kB)
{
"etymology_text": "Likely US origin, or possibly from Ivan Andreyevich Krylov's 1814 fable, The Inquisitive Man, which tells of a man going to a museum and noticing all sorts of things apart from an elephant.",
"forms": [
{
"form": "elephants in the room",
"tags": [
"plural"
]
}
],
"head_templates": [
{
"args": {
"1": "elephants in the room"
},
"expansion": "elephant in the room (plural elephants in the room)",
"name": "en-noun"
}
],
"lang": "English",
"lang_code": "en",
"pos": "noun",
"senses": [
{
"categories": [
{
"kind": "other",
"name": "Amharic terms with redundant script codes",
"parents": [
"Terms with redundant script codes",
"Entry maintenance"
],
"source": "w"
},
{
"kind": "other",
"name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
"parents": [
"Entries with incorrect language header",
"Entry maintenance"
],
"source": "w"
},
{
"kind": "other",
"name": "English entries with topic categories using raw markup",
"parents": [
"Entries with topic categories using raw markup",
"Entry maintenance"
],
"source": "w"
},
{
"kind": "other",
"name": "English terms with non-redundant non-automated sortkeys",
"parents": [
"Terms with non-redundant non-automated sortkeys",
"Entry maintenance"
],
"source": "w"
},
{
"kind": "other",
"name": "Mandarin terms with redundant transliterations",
"parents": [
"Terms with redundant transliterations",
"Entry maintenance"
],
"source": "w"
},
{
"kind": "lifeform",
"langcode": "en",
"name": "Elephants",
"orig": "en:Elephants",
"parents": [
"Mammals",
"Vertebrates",
"Chordates",
"Animals",
"Lifeforms",
"All topics",
"Life",
"Fundamental",
"Nature"
],
"source": "w"
}
],
"derived": [
{
"word": "gorilla in the room"
}
],
"examples": [
{
"ref": "2008 January 6, Nicholas Rufford, “Motormouth: The car of the future, at £1,300”, in Sunday Times (UK)",
"text": "There is an elephant in the room that nearly every politician and green campaigner is ignoring. It’s called population growth.",
"type": "quotation"
},
{
"ref": "2022 January 17, Martin Choi, “Macau’s gaming law reforms positive for casino industry, but outlook clouded by Covid-19 uncertainty, UBS, JPMorgan analysts say”, in South China Morning Post",
"text": "While the Swiss bank remained positive on the sector through 2022, the coronavirus situation remained “the elephant in the room,” he added.",
"type": "quotation"
}
],
"glosses": [
"A problem or difficult issue that is very obvious, but is ignored for the convenience or comfort of those involved."
],
"id": "en-elephant_in_the_room-en-noun-cZ18lNoC",
"links": [
[
"problem",
"problem"
],
[
"difficult",
"difficult"
],
[
"issue",
"issue"
],
[
"obvious",
"obvious"
],
[
"ignore",
"ignore"
],
[
"convenience",
"convenience"
],
[
"comfort",
"comfort"
]
],
"raw_glosses": [
"(idiomatic) A problem or difficult issue that is very obvious, but is ignored for the convenience or comfort of those involved."
],
"synonyms": [
{
"word": "800-pound gorilla"
},
{
"word": "gorilla in the room"
}
],
"tags": [
"idiomatic"
],
"translations": [
{
"code": "am",
"lang": "Amharic",
"roman": "bäkfəlu wəsṭ zəhon",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "በክፍሉ ውስጥ ዝሆን"
},
{
"code": "hy",
"lang": "Armenian",
"roman": "pʻiġ meǰ taracutʻyunə",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "փիղ մեջ տարածությունը"
},
{
"code": "cmn",
"lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "房間裡的大象"
},
{
"code": "cmn",
"lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
"roman": "fángjiān lǐ de dàxiàng",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "房间里的大象"
},
{
"code": "nl",
"lang": "Dutch",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "olifant in de kamer"
},
{
"code": "eo",
"lang": "Esperanto",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "elefanto en la ĉambro"
},
{
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "vaiettu tosiasia"
},
{
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "virtahepo olohuoneessa"
},
{
"code": "fr",
"lang": "French",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "l’éléphant dans la pièce"
},
{
"code": "ka",
"lang": "Georgian",
"roman": "adgilši sṗilo",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "ადგილში სპილო"
},
{
"code": "de",
"lang": "German",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "Elefant im Raum"
},
{
"code": "he",
"lang": "Hebrew",
"roman": "pil ba-ẖéder",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "פיל בחדר"
},
{
"code": "hi",
"lang": "Hindi",
"roman": "kamre mẽ hāthī",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "कमरे में हाथी"
},
{
"code": "hu",
"lang": "Hungarian",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "elefánt a szobában"
},
{
"code": "id",
"lang": "Indonesian",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "gajah di dalam sang kamar"
},
{
"code": "it",
"lang": "Italian",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "elefante nella stanza"
},
{
"code": "ja",
"lang": "Japanese",
"roman": "Heya no zō",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "部屋の象"
},
{
"code": "ko",
"lang": "Korean",
"roman": "bang'anui kokkiri",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "방안의 코끼리"
},
{
"code": "pl",
"lang": "Polish",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "słoń w salonie"
},
{
"code": "pt",
"lang": "Portuguese",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "elefante na sala"
},
{
"code": "ro",
"lang": "Romanian",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "elefantul din cameră"
},
{
"code": "ru",
"lang": "Russian",
"roman": "slona-to ja i ne primetil",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "слона-то я и не приметил"
},
{
"code": "ru",
"lang": "Russian",
"roman": "skolʹzkaja tema",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "скользкая тема"
},
{
"code": "ru",
"lang": "Russian",
"roman": "ne vídetʹ lésa za derévʹjami",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "не ви́деть ле́са за дере́вьями"
},
{
"code": "es",
"lang": "Spanish",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "elefante en la habitación"
},
{
"code": "sv",
"lang": "Swedish",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "elefanten i rummet"
},
{
"code": "th",
"lang": "Thai",
"roman": "cháang-nai-hɔ̂ng",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "ช้างในห้อง"
}
],
"wikipedia": [
"Ivan Krylov",
"Michael Quinion"
]
}
],
"sounds": [
{
"audio": "en-au-elephant in the room.ogg",
"mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/e/ed/En-au-elephant_in_the_room.ogg/En-au-elephant_in_the_room.ogg.mp3",
"ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ed/En-au-elephant_in_the_room.ogg",
"tags": [
"Australia"
],
"text": "Audio (AU)"
}
],
"word": "elephant in the room"
}
{
"derived": [
{
"word": "gorilla in the room"
}
],
"etymology_text": "Likely US origin, or possibly from Ivan Andreyevich Krylov's 1814 fable, The Inquisitive Man, which tells of a man going to a museum and noticing all sorts of things apart from an elephant.",
"forms": [
{
"form": "elephants in the room",
"tags": [
"plural"
]
}
],
"head_templates": [
{
"args": {
"1": "elephants in the room"
},
"expansion": "elephant in the room (plural elephants in the room)",
"name": "en-noun"
}
],
"lang": "English",
"lang_code": "en",
"pos": "noun",
"senses": [
{
"categories": [
"Amharic terms with redundant script codes",
"English countable nouns",
"English entries with incorrect language header",
"English entries with topic categories using raw markup",
"English idioms",
"English lemmas",
"English multiword terms",
"English nouns",
"English terms with audio links",
"English terms with non-redundant non-automated sortkeys",
"English terms with quotations",
"Mandarin terms with redundant transliterations",
"en:Elephants"
],
"examples": [
{
"ref": "2008 January 6, Nicholas Rufford, “Motormouth: The car of the future, at £1,300”, in Sunday Times (UK)",
"text": "There is an elephant in the room that nearly every politician and green campaigner is ignoring. It’s called population growth.",
"type": "quotation"
},
{
"ref": "2022 January 17, Martin Choi, “Macau’s gaming law reforms positive for casino industry, but outlook clouded by Covid-19 uncertainty, UBS, JPMorgan analysts say”, in South China Morning Post",
"text": "While the Swiss bank remained positive on the sector through 2022, the coronavirus situation remained “the elephant in the room,” he added.",
"type": "quotation"
}
],
"glosses": [
"A problem or difficult issue that is very obvious, but is ignored for the convenience or comfort of those involved."
],
"links": [
[
"problem",
"problem"
],
[
"difficult",
"difficult"
],
[
"issue",
"issue"
],
[
"obvious",
"obvious"
],
[
"ignore",
"ignore"
],
[
"convenience",
"convenience"
],
[
"comfort",
"comfort"
]
],
"raw_glosses": [
"(idiomatic) A problem or difficult issue that is very obvious, but is ignored for the convenience or comfort of those involved."
],
"synonyms": [
{
"word": "800-pound gorilla"
},
{
"word": "gorilla in the room"
}
],
"tags": [
"idiomatic"
],
"wikipedia": [
"Ivan Krylov",
"Michael Quinion"
]
}
],
"sounds": [
{
"audio": "en-au-elephant in the room.ogg",
"mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/e/ed/En-au-elephant_in_the_room.ogg/En-au-elephant_in_the_room.ogg.mp3",
"ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ed/En-au-elephant_in_the_room.ogg",
"tags": [
"Australia"
],
"text": "Audio (AU)"
}
],
"translations": [
{
"code": "am",
"lang": "Amharic",
"roman": "bäkfəlu wəsṭ zəhon",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "በክፍሉ ውስጥ ዝሆን"
},
{
"code": "hy",
"lang": "Armenian",
"roman": "pʻiġ meǰ taracutʻyunə",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "փիղ մեջ տարածությունը"
},
{
"code": "cmn",
"lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "房間裡的大象"
},
{
"code": "cmn",
"lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
"roman": "fángjiān lǐ de dàxiàng",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "房间里的大象"
},
{
"code": "nl",
"lang": "Dutch",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "olifant in de kamer"
},
{
"code": "eo",
"lang": "Esperanto",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "elefanto en la ĉambro"
},
{
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "vaiettu tosiasia"
},
{
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "virtahepo olohuoneessa"
},
{
"code": "fr",
"lang": "French",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "l’éléphant dans la pièce"
},
{
"code": "ka",
"lang": "Georgian",
"roman": "adgilši sṗilo",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "ადგილში სპილო"
},
{
"code": "de",
"lang": "German",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "Elefant im Raum"
},
{
"code": "he",
"lang": "Hebrew",
"roman": "pil ba-ẖéder",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "פיל בחדר"
},
{
"code": "hi",
"lang": "Hindi",
"roman": "kamre mẽ hāthī",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "कमरे में हाथी"
},
{
"code": "hu",
"lang": "Hungarian",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "elefánt a szobában"
},
{
"code": "id",
"lang": "Indonesian",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "gajah di dalam sang kamar"
},
{
"code": "it",
"lang": "Italian",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "elefante nella stanza"
},
{
"code": "ja",
"lang": "Japanese",
"roman": "Heya no zō",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "部屋の象"
},
{
"code": "ko",
"lang": "Korean",
"roman": "bang'anui kokkiri",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "방안의 코끼리"
},
{
"code": "pl",
"lang": "Polish",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "słoń w salonie"
},
{
"code": "pt",
"lang": "Portuguese",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "elefante na sala"
},
{
"code": "ro",
"lang": "Romanian",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "elefantul din cameră"
},
{
"code": "ru",
"lang": "Russian",
"roman": "slona-to ja i ne primetil",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "слона-то я и не приметил"
},
{
"code": "ru",
"lang": "Russian",
"roman": "skolʹzkaja tema",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "скользкая тема"
},
{
"code": "ru",
"lang": "Russian",
"roman": "ne vídetʹ lésa za derévʹjami",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "не ви́деть ле́са за дере́вьями"
},
{
"code": "es",
"lang": "Spanish",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "elefante en la habitación"
},
{
"code": "sv",
"lang": "Swedish",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "elefanten i rummet"
},
{
"code": "th",
"lang": "Thai",
"roman": "cháang-nai-hɔ̂ng",
"sense": "problem that is obvious but ignored",
"word": "ช้างในห้อง"
}
],
"word": "elephant in the room"
}
This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2024-05-09 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2024-05-02 using wiktextract (4d5d0bb and edd475d). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.
If you use this data in academic research, please cite Tatu Ylonen: Wiktextract: Wiktionary as Machine-Readable Structured Data, Proceedings of the 13th Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC), pp. 1317-1325, Marseille, 20-25 June 2022. Linking to the relevant page(s) under https://kaikki.org would also be greatly appreciated.