What Does The Phrase Elephant In The Room Mean

The first reference to the phrase that i have found is in the charleston gazette july 1952.

What does the phrase elephant in the room mean.

The elephant in the room phrase. The elephant in the room is an american phrase with murky origins the first reference being in 1935 to mean something obvious and incongruous. The elephant in the room definition. Definitions by the largest idiom dictionary.

The expression elephant in the room usually the elephant in the room or the elephant in the living room is a metaphorical idiom in english 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 discuss because it makes at least some of them uncomfortable or is personally socially or politically. An elephant in the room definition. If there is an elephant in the room it means that an obvious problem is being ignored put another way it is a noticeable issue that is not acknowledged or addressed. Definition of the elephant in the room in the idioms dictionary.

An obvious truth that is deliberately ignored by everyone in a situation meaning pronunciation translations and examples. The meaning if not the exact wording dates from at least the 1950s and is possibly some years older than that. Chicago that s an old indian word meaning get that elephant out of your room. What does the elephant in the room expression mean.

If you say there is an elephant in the room you mean that there is an obvious problem or. In the 1950s the elephant in the room came to mean what it means today something enormous that people choose to. An elephant in the room meaning.