elusions
Slippery getaway maneuvers
Elusions are acts of evading or escaping, particularly through cleverness or skill.
The word emphasizes successful avoidance—of capture, detection, or understanding: His repeated elusions of the authorities frustrated investigators.
Not to be confused with illusions (false perceptions) or allusions (indirect references).
Deliberate deception or fraud
- subterfugeDeliberate deception to conceal
- misdirectionIntentional focus manipulation
- guileSly, strategic dishonesty
- sleightDexterous trickery
ruse · feint · deceit · duplicity · artifice · chicanery · pretense · sham
Avoid by quick movement
- sidestepEvade by moving aside
- evasionAct of escaping detection
- slipMinor error or misstep
- swerveAbrupt directional change
feint · misdirection · deflection · circumvention · jink · weaving · ducking · parry
Deliberately avoiding someone
- sidesteppingMoving aside to avoid
- dodgingAvoiding by moving aside
- shirkingAvoiding obligatory tasks
- duckingBending to avoid impact
bypassing · distancing · abstention · nonparticipation · disregard · ignoring · reluctance · hesitation
Something hard to fathom
- mysterySomething unexplained or unknown
- inscrutabilityImpossible to understand
- ineffabilityBeing beyond articulation
- vaguenessAbsence of precision
ambiguity · obscurity · impalpability · phantom · wisp · shadow · will-o'-the-wisp · mirage
Aerial journey by aircraft
- getawaySwift departure or retreat
- breakoutSudden escape from restraint
- slipMinor error or misstep
- abscondingDeparting secretly to evade
extrication · departure · bolt · fleeing · exfiltration · disappearance · vanishing · slipping away
Slight shade of difference
- delicacyRefined sensitivity or rarity
- finesseSubtle, deft handling
- understatementIntentional diminishment for effect
- hintIndirect suggestion
implication · insinuation · subtext · indirection · obliqueness · suggestiveness · tacitness · veiled reference
trickery
Deliberate deception or fraud
- subterfugeDeliberate deception to conceal
- misdirectionIntentional focus manipulation
- guileSly, strategic dishonesty
sleight · ruse · feint · deceit · duplicity · artifice · chicanery · pretense · sham · obfuscation
dodge
Avoid by quick movement
swerve · feint · misdirection · deflection · circumvention · jink · weaving · ducking · parry · bypass
shunning
Deliberately avoiding someone
- sidesteppingMoving aside to avoid
- dodgingAvoiding by moving aside
- shirkingAvoiding obligatory tasks
ducking · bypassing · distancing · abstention · nonparticipation · disregard · ignoring · reluctance · hesitation · declination
enigma
Something hard to fathom
- mysterySomething unexplained or unknown
- inscrutabilityImpossible to understand
- ineffabilityBeing beyond articulation
vagueness · ambiguity · obscurity · impalpability · phantom · wisp · shadow · will-o'-the-wisp · mirage · fleeting
flight
Aerial journey by aircraft
absconding · extrication · departure · bolt · fleeing · exfiltration · disappearance · vanishing · slipping away · narrow escape
nuance
Slight shade of difference
- delicacyRefined sensitivity or rarity
- finesseSubtle, deft handling
- understatementIntentional diminishment for effect
hint · implication · insinuation · subtext · indirection · obliqueness · suggestiveness · tacitness · veiled reference · innuendo
elusionsconfrontations
Direct hostile encounters
engagements · encounters · face-offs · meetings · showdowns
elusionscaptures
Takes into custody
apprehensions · seizures · arrests · catches · entrapments
elusionsrevelations
Surprising facts made known
disclosures · discoveries · detections · exposures · clarifications