102:
43:
316:, stated in an interview that not knowing that drug money financed part of the presidential campaign was similar to not noticing "an elephant entering one's living room". Since then, the events that led to drug money financing the "Samper for President" campaign have been referred to as "The Elephant."
272:
The term refers to a question, problem, solution, or controversial issue which is obvious to everyone who knows about the situation, but which is deliberately ignored because to do otherwise would cause great embarrassment, sadness, or arguments, or is simply taboo. The idiom can imply a
288:
The idiom is commonly used in addiction recovery terminology to describe the reluctance of friends and family of an addicted person to discuss the person's problem, thus aiding the person's denial. Especially in reference to alcohol abuse, the idiom is sometimes coupled with that of the
146:
because it makes at least some of them uncomfortable and is personally, socially, or politically embarrassing, controversial, inflammatory, or dangerous. The metaphorical elephant represents an obvious problem or difficult situation that people do not want to talk about.
284:
or which generates disagreement, such as race, religion, politics, homosexuality, mental illness, or suicide. It is applicable when a subject is emotionally charged; and the people who might have spoken up decide that it is probably best avoided.
240:
The phrase may also be a response to philosopher Alfred North
Whitehead's 1929 description of the validity of immediate experience: "Sometimes we see an elephant, and sometimes we do not. The result is that an elephant, when present, is noticed."
258:, in which a police officer stops him as he leads a live elephant and asks, "What are you doing with that elephant?" Durante's reply, "What elephant?" was a regular show-stopper. Durante reprises the piece in the 1962 film version of the play,
202:
on 20 June 1959: "Financing schools has become a problem about equal to having an elephant in the living room. It's so big you just can't ignore it." According to the website the Phrase Finder, the first known use in print is from 1952.
173:(1769–1844), poet and fabulist, wrote a fable entitled "The Inquisitive Man", which tells of a man who goes to a museum and notices all sorts of tiny things, but fails to notice an elephant. The phrase became proverbial.
391:
used an example of a rhinoceros in the room either to show the impossibility of disproving negative existential statements, or possibly a more subtle philosophical point.
221:", which recounts the inept, far-ranging activities of detectives trying to find an elephant that was right on the spot after all. This story, combined with Dostoyevsky's
101:
210:
in 1915. The sentence was presented as a trivial illustration of a question
British schoolboys would be able to answer, e.g., "Is there an elephant in the class-room?"
853:
206:
This idiomatic expression may have been in general use much earlier than 1959. For example, the phrase appears 44 years earlier in the pages of the
British
1149:
142:
for an important or enormous topic, question, or controversial issue that is obvious or that everyone knows about but no one mentions or wants to
485:
277:
that the issue ought to be discussed openly, or it can simply be an acknowledgment that the issue is there and not going to go away by itself.
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300:
was a legal investigation of a
Colombian presidential campaign. There were accusations that the campaign of Colombian Liberal Party candidate
1098:
1044:
1036:
829:
31:
119:
in 1939. The metaphorical elephant in the room represents an obvious problem or difficult situation that people do not want to talk about.
585:"the elephant in the (living) room | meaning of the elephant in the (living) room in Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English | LDOCE"
308:. Insisting on his innocence, Samper stated that if drug money had entered the presidential campaign, it had done so "behind his back".
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237:(1951) of "the Mark Twain story of the little boy who was told to stand in a corner and not to think of a white elephant."
979:"‘Elephant in the corner of the living room’: Discrimination common, associated with depression among minority children,"
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684:. trans. Pevear, Richard, 1943-, Volokhonsky, Larissa. London: Vintage. pp. 718 and 38, respectively.
562:
183:
wrote, "Belinsky was just like Krylov's
Inquisitive Man, who didn't notice the elephant in the museum...."
510:
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can appear to be overlooked in codified social interactions and that the sociology and psychology of
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540: – Idiom for impractical possessions that are expensive to maintain but cannot be disposed of
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A variation is the phrase "elephant in the corner" which is infrequently used to the same effect.
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The expression has also been used as a metaphorical idiom in
Spanish. In 1994, the
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990:"The Elephant in the Corner: Gender and Policies Related to Higher Education,"
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Various languages around the world have words that describe similar concepts.
1091:
Spoken
English: a Detailed and Simplified Course for Learning Spoken English.
821:
Spoken
English: A detailed and simplified course for learning spoken English
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407:
116:
819:
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1052:
930:
891:"Alexandra Burke finally addresses her iconic 'elephant in the room' meme"
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The first widely disseminated conceptual reference was a story written by
679:
455: – Attempt made by investors to avoid negative financial information
151:
132:
109:
1084:
1061:(Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky, translators). London: Vintage.
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It is based on the idea and thought that something as conspicuous as an
774:"United States v. Antonelli Fireworks Co., 155 F.2d 631 (2d Cir. 1946)"
989:
519:
362:" also uses the concept, as does a poem by Terry Kettering, entitled
345:
193:
113:
737:"'The elephant in the room' - the meaning and origin of this phrase"
71:. Statements consisting only of original research should be removed.
329:
references the term. This was in turn influential in the naming of
280:
The term is often used to describe an issue that involves a social
478:
281:
135:
100:
449: – Generally known but officially unacknowledged information
1118:
Oxford
Advanced Learners Dictionary (OALD), Word of the Month:
376:
was labeled as the "Elephant in the Room" on the cover page.
36:
27:
English idiom of an obvious major problem that no one mentions
792:"United States v. Leviton et al, 193 F.2d 848 (2d Cir. 1951)"
443: – Expression indicating something suspicious or wrong
1006:"Russel, Wittgenstein and the problem of the rhinoceros"
404: – American English expression of powerful entities
515:
Pages displaying short descriptions of redirect targets
507:, 2010 book by Christopher Chabris & Daniel Simons
474:
Pages displaying short descriptions of redirect targets
430:
Pages displaying short descriptions of redirect targets
60:
461: – Known falsehood a group shares for politeness
650:"Elephant in the room Idiom Definition – Grammarist"
490:
Pages displaying wikidata descriptions as a fallback
428: – Classification based on observable evidence
499: – 1837 fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen
422: – Type of absurd joke involving an elephant
192:gives the first recorded use of the phrase, as a
416: – Parable illustrating ontologic reasoning
472: – Undisclosed negative fact about someone
920:Gerontological Nursing: Competencies for Care,
714:"OED, Draft Additions June 2006: elephant, n."
304:was partially funded with drug money from the
8:
522: – Term referring to a social behaviour
410: – Perception or knowledge of something
563:"An elephant in the room: idiom, informal"
513: – Metaphor for "untouchable" issues
87:Learn how and when to remove this message
610:"World Wide Words: Elephant in the room"
481: – Societal or cultural prohibition
229:'s mind when he wrote in his dissent in
550:
824:. New Delhi: Lotus Press. p. 95.
636:Cambridge academic content dictionary,
1025:Cambridge academic content dictionary
889:Bashforth, Emily (20 November 2021).
556:
554:
32:Elephant in the room (disambiguation)
7:
1023:Cambridge University Press. (2009).
673:
671:
633:Cambridge University Press. (2009).
231:United States v. Antonelli Fireworks
988:). 8 May 2010; O'Connor, P. (2008)
872:"Articulo Archivado FRASES DEL AÑO"
488: – 2011 film by Michael Webber
293:, "the pink elephant in the room."
1027:(Paul Heacock, editor). New York:
437:("Don't think of a pink elephant")
158:also operates on the macro scale.
25:
1150:Metaphors referring to elephants
954:"Chris Christie Was Born to Run"
366:. In a November 2013 edition of
41:
486:The Elephant in the Living Room
348:, in his 2006 Los Angeles show
233:(1946) and again in dissent in
129:the elephant in the living room
18:The Elephant in the Living Room
1059:Demons: a novel in three parts
1009:Southern Journal of Philosophy
986:American Academy of Pediatrics
929:; "The Elephant in the Room,"
681:Demons: a novel in three parts
470:Skeleton in the closet (idiom)
372:magazine, New Jersey governor
1:
1057:Dostoyevsky, Fyodor. (1994).
678:Dostoyevsky, Fyodor (1994).
337:, although Van Sant thought
248:starred on Broadway in the
67:the claims made and adding
1171:
1029:Cambridge University Press
914:Mauk, Kristen L. (2006).
854:"Canal RCN - Noticias RCN"
571:Cambridge University Press
335:2003 film of the same name
29:
808:Process and Reality, p. 6
497:The Emperor's New Clothes
414:Blind men and an elephant
387:Logician and philosopher
312:, a leader of Colombia's
219:The Stolen White Elephant
189:Oxford English Dictionary
1093:New Delhi: Lotus Press.
1089:Palta, Namrata. (2007).
530:, a term popularized by
364:The Elephant in the Room
323:'s 1989 television film
235:United States v. Leviton
125:the elephant in the room
1135:English-language idioms
1077:Oxford University Press
818:Palta, Namrata (2007).
763:Vol. 37 (1915), p. 288.
341:was being referenced.
112:in a room, attending a
511:Third rail of politics
441:Nigger in the woodpile
339:a different expression
310:Cardinal Pedro Rubiano
120:
1073:Journal of education,
1004:MacDonald, JF (1993)
878:on 10 September 2012.
860:on 28 September 2007.
761:Journal of education,
504:The Invisible Gorilla
465:Seeing pink elephants
435:Ironic process theory
104:
1120:Elephant in the room
1071:__________. (1915).
939:21 July 2011 at the
534:with similar meaning
208:Journal of Education
30:For other uses, see
798:. 30 November 1951.
656:. 24 September 2015
589:www.ldoceonline.com
389:Ludwig Wittgenstein
225:, may have been on
995:56(1), pp. 85-110.
960:. 18 November 2013
493:, 2011 documentary
261:Billy Rose's Jumbo
244:In 1935, comedian
199:The New York Times
121:
52:possibly contains
1099:978-8-183-82052-3
1075:Vol. 37. Oxford:
1045:978-0-521-69196-3
1037:978-0-521-87143-3
831:978-81-8382-052-3
402:800-pound gorilla
252:Broadway musical
175:Fyodor Dostoevsky
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16:(Redirected from
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447:Open secret
321:Alan Clarke
306:Cali Cartel
171:Ivan Krylov
1129:Categories
964:23 October
840:1245818231
654:Grammarist
546:References
250:Billy Rose
223:white bear
217:in 1882, "
215:Mark Twain
156:repression
61:improve it
1155:Etiquette
1107:297508439
1053:183392531
943:May 2003.
408:Awareness
169:In 1814,
117:tea party
77:July 2021
65:verifying
937:Archived
900:17 March
700:31657709
395:See also
360:Elephant
326:Elephant
152:elephant
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114:Sydney
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479:Taboo
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268:Usage
255:Jumbo
196:, in
136:idiom
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836:OCLC
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