1
(2)
: something that deceives or misleads intellectually
b(1)
: perception of something objectively existing in such a way as to cause misinterpretation of its actual nature
(3)
: a pattern capable of reversible perspective
2
a(1)
: the state or fact of being intellectually deceived or misled : misapprehension
(2)
: an instance of such deception
b
obsolete
: the action of deceiving
3
: a fine plain transparent bobbinet or tulle usually made of silk and used for veils, trimmings, and dresses
Illustration of illusion
- a and b are equal in length
Did you know?
Allusion and illusion may share some portion of their ancestry (both words come in part from the Latin word ludere, meaning “to play”), and sound quite similar, but they are distinct words with very different meanings. An allusion is an indirect reference, whereas an illusion is something that is unreal or incorrect. Each of the nouns has a related verb form: allude “to refer indirectly to,” and illude (not a very common word), which may mean “to delude or deceive” or “to subject to an illusion.”
Synonyms
Choose the Right Synonym for illusion
delusion, illusion, hallucination, mirage mean something that is believed to be true or real but that is actually false or unreal.
delusion implies an inability to distinguish between what is real and what only seems to be real, often as the result of a disordered state of mind.
illusion implies a false ascribing of reality based on what one sees or imagines.
hallucination implies impressions that are the product of disordered senses, as because of mental illness or drugs.
suffered from terrifying hallucinations
mirage in its extended sense applies to an illusory vision, dream, hope, or aim.
claimed a balanced budget is a mirage
Example Sentences
The video game is designed to give the illusion that you are in control of an airplane.
They used paint to create the illusion of metal.
She says that all progress is just an illusion.
Recent Examples on the Web
Compare that to the nightmare of Apple TV+’s Severance, in which neither the means of production nor the actual product is clear, and people have to submit to mind-altering surgery in order to give themselves an illusion of work-life balance.
—
Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 30 Mar. 2023
While one shampoo won’t give you fuller hair in the long run, these 15 thickening shampoos will give the illusion of thick, voluptuous hair right away.
—Katie Intner, Harper’s BAZAAR, 29 Mar. 2023
The supernatural elements add twists to the story, blurring the line between illusion and reality.
—Los Angeles Times Staff, Los Angeles Times, 23 Mar. 2023
The Jessica Simpson Mandayss Ballet Flat is a classic ballet flat with elastic straps that cross over the ankles to not only give the illusion of a pointe shoe, but also provide support and prevent your heel from sliding out.
—Alyssa Brascia, Peoplemag, 19 Mar. 2023
That productive energy will nevertheless be overshadowed by the Sun conjoining magical Neptune in Pisces at 7:39 pm EST, which can create illusions and confusion.
—Tarot Astrologers, Chicago Tribune, 14 Mar. 2023
Unlike many weight loss gummies on the market, these gummies have real ingredients that will actually promote weight loss, instead of just giving the illusion of helping.
—Amber Smith, Discover Magazine, 6 Mar. 2023
Now, more and more women are turning to scalp micropigmentation — a procedure traditional sought by men — to give the illusion of a perfect fade or full, lush tresses.
—Desiree Browne, ELLE, 24 Feb. 2023
Their striking design is not only made for the Instagram era but also gives the illusion of invisibility by perfectly blending in with their surroundings, delivering privacy and a memorable experience.
—Dobrina Zhekova, Travel + Leisure, 16 Feb. 2023
See More
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word ‘illusion.’ Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Late Latin illusion-, illusio, from Latin, action of mocking, from illudere to mock at, from in- + ludere to play, mock — more at ludicrous
First Known Use
14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2b
Time Traveler
The first known use of illusion was
in the 14th century
Dictionary Entries Near illusion
Cite this Entry
“Illusion.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/illusion. Accessed 14 Apr. 2023.
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More from Merriam-Webster on illusion
Last Updated:
1 Apr 2023
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Merriam-Webster unabridged
Illusion — Illusion … Deutsch Wörterbuch
ILLUSION — ILLUSI Métaphoriquement dérivé de la réduction psychologique des enchantements magiques et des découvertes de l’optique géométrique, couronnant, avec Kant, la critique relativiste de l’optimisme leibnizien, le concept moderne d’illusion a conquis … Encyclopédie Universelle
illusion — ILLUSION. s. f. Apparence, ou artifice, dont on trompe un homme. Ce n est rien de solide, ce n est qu une illusion, une pure illusion, une belle illusion Il se dit plus ordinairement des tromperies que font les demons, en faisant paroistre aux… … Dictionnaire de l’Académie française
Illusion — Il*lu sion, n. [F. illusion, L. illusio, fr. illudere, illusum, to illude. See {Illude}.] 1. An unreal image presented to the bodily or mental vision; a deceptive appearance; a false show; mockery; hallucination. [1913 Webster] To cheat the eye… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
Illusion — Sf std. (18. Jh.) Entlehnung. Entlehnt aus frz. illusion und l. illūsio ( ōnis), dieses zu l. illūdere (illūsum) täuschen, betrügen, verspotten , zu l. lūdere (lūsum) Possen treiben, spielen, täuschen und l. in . Adjektiv: illusorisch;… … Etymologisches Wörterbuch der deutschen sprache
illusion — [i lo͞o′zhən] n. [ME illusioun < OFr illusion < L illusio, a mocking (in LL(Ec), deceit, illusion) < illusus, pp. of illudere, to mock, play with < in , on + ludere, to play: see LUDICROUS] 1. a false idea or conception; belief or… … English World dictionary
Illusion — Illusion, (v. lat.), 1) Betrug, Täuschung der Sinne; 2) täuschende Nachahmung, bei allen Kunstwerken, deren Absicht auf Nachahmung der Natur geht, ein unerläßliches Erforderniß. Daher Illusorisch, was die Illusion befördert; täuschend … Pierer’s Universal-Lexikon
illusion — I (deception) noun aberration, distortion, fallacy, false impression, misbelief, misconception, prestidigitation II (impression) noun apparition, artifice, chimera, daydream, deception, delusion, dream, figment, hallucination, masquerade, mirage … Law dictionary
illusion — (n.) mid 14c., act of deception, from O.Fr. illusion a mocking, deceit, deception (12c.), from L. illusionem (nom. illusio) a mocking, jesting, irony, from illudere mock at, lit. to play with, from assimilated form of in at, upon (see IN (Cf. in… … Etymology dictionary
Illusion — »Wunschbild, Selbsttäuschung«: Das Fremdwort wurde im 17. Jh. aus gleichbed. frz. illusion entlehnt, das auf lat. illusio »Verspottung, Täuschung; eitle Vorstellung« zurückgeht. Dies gehört zu lat. il ludere (< inludere) »hinspielen, sein… … Das Herkunftswörterbuch
illusion — [n] false appearance; false belief apparition, bubble*, chimera, confusion, daydream, deception, déjè vu*, delusion, error, fallacy, false impression, fancy, fantasy, figment of imagination*, fool’s paradise*, ghost, hallucination, head trip*,… … New thesaurus
Other forms: illusions
An illusion is something that isn’t real. It may look real, but it’s actually fake — just a crafty construction or fantasy. Like the old rabbit-out-of-the-hat trick practiced by magicians around the globe.
An illusion is an act of deception. Some optical illusions are pretty cool to watch, but an illusion can also point to an erroneous belief or false perception of reality, which is where you start getting into hallucination territory — seeing things that aren’t there. You can give the illusion that you’re fascinated by your professor’s lecture by chewing on your pencil, furrowing your brow, and making sure to nod enthusiastically every so often.
Definitions of illusion
-
noun
an erroneous mental representation
-
synonyms:
semblance
see moresee less-
types:
- show 6 types…
- hide 6 types…
-
apparition, fantasm, phantasm, phantasma, phantom, shadow
something existing in perception only
-
irradiation
the apparent enlargement of a bright object when viewed against a dark background
-
phantom limb
the illusion that a limb still exists after it has been amputated
-
UFO, flying saucer, unidentified flying object
an (apparently) flying object whose nature is unknown; especially those considered to have extraterrestrial origins
-
Flying Dutchman
a phantom ship that is said to appear in storms near the Cape of Good Hope
-
ghost, shade, specter, spectre, spook, wraith
a mental representation of some haunting experience
-
type of:
-
appearance
a mental representation
-
noun
an illusory feat; considered magical by naive observers
-
noun
something many people believe that is false
“they have the
illusion that I am very wealthy”-
synonyms:
fancy, fantasy, phantasy
-
noun
the act of deluding; deception by creating illusory ideas
DISCLAIMER: These example sentences appear in various news sources and books to reflect the usage of the word ‘illusion’.
Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Vocabulary.com or its editors.
Send us feedback
Commonly confused words
allusion / illusion / delusion
Novelists, magicians, and other tricksters keep these words busy. Novelists love an allusion, an indirect reference to something like a secret treasure for the reader to find; magicians heart illusions, or fanciful fake-outs; but tricksters suffer from delusions, ideas that have no basis in reality.
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иллюзия, призрак, мираж, обман чувств, прозрачная кисея, тюль
существительное ↓
Мои примеры
Примеры с переводом
‘I hate to shatter your illusions,’ he said. 
— Мне неприятно разрушать ваши иллюзии, — сказал он.
It’s an illusion to think that…
Странно обольщаться по поводу…
She was under no illusion that he loved her.
У неё не было никаких иллюзий относительно того, любил ли он её.
The succession of flashing lights gave an illusion of movement.
Смена мигающих огней создавала иллюзию движения.
This illusion has been sedulously fostered.
Эта иллюзия старательно поддерживалась.
She had no illusions about her physical attractions.
Она не питала никаких иллюзий насчет своей привлекательности.
This illusion may be dissipated by a process of reasoning.
Подобные заблуждения можно полностью рассеять в процессе рассуждения.
ещё 6 примеров свернуть
Примеры, ожидающие перевода
She says that all progress is just an illusion. 
It is an illusion that the Arctic is dark in winter.
He was unlikely to be satisfied with the illusion of power.
Для того чтобы добавить вариант перевода, кликните по иконке ☰, напротив примера.
Возможные однокоренные слова
disillusion — разочарование, утрата иллюзий, разочаровывать, разрушать иллюзии
illusionist — иллюзионист, фокусник, мечтатель, фантазер, приверженец иллюзионизма
disillusioned — разочарованный
illusionism — иллюзионизм
Формы слова
noun
ед. ч.(singular): illusion
мн. ч.(plural): illusions
English[edit]
Etymology[edit]
From Old French illusion, from Latin illūsiō, from illūdere, from in- (“at, upon”) + lūdere (“to play, mock, trick”). Displaced native Old English dwimmer.
Pronunciation[edit]
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ɪˈl(j)uːʒ(ə)n/
- (General American) enPR: ĭ-lo͞o’zhən, IPA(key): [ɪˈluː.ʒən]
- (Conservative RP) IPA(key): /ɪˈl(j)uːzj(ə)n/
- Rhymes: -uːʒən
Noun[edit]
illusion (countable and uncountable, plural illusions)
- (countable) Anything that seems to be something that it is not.
-
We saw what looked like a tiger among the trees, but it was an illusion caused by the shadows of the branches.
-
Using artificial additives, scientists can create the illusion of fruit flavours in food.
-
- (countable) A misapprehension; a belief in something that is in fact not true.
-
Jane has this illusion that John is in love with her.
-
- (countable) A magician’s trick.
- (uncountable) The state of being deceived or misled.
Synonyms[edit]
- (that seems to be something it is not): mirage, phantom
- (a belief in something untrue; the state of being misled): delusion
- (a belief in something untrue): misapprehension, misbelief, misconception
Derived terms[edit]
- argument from illusion
- barber pole illusion
- café wall illusion
- coffer illusion
- comparative illusion
- Cornsweet illusion
- cutaneous rabbit illusion
- Ebbinghaus illusion
- Ehrenstein illusion
- end-of-history illusion
- flash-lag illusion
- illusionist
- illusory
- introspection illusion
- money illusion
- moon illusion
- Müller-Lyer illusion
- optical illusion
- Pinocchio illusion
- Poggendorff illusion
- Ponzo illusion
- somatogravic illusion
- Thatcher illusion
- under the illusion
- watercolor illusion
- Zöllner illusion
Translations[edit]
anything that seems to be something that it is not
- Arabic: هَلْوَسَة (ar) f (halwasa), وَهْم m (wahm), اِنْخِدَاع m (inḵidāʕ)
- Armenian: պատրանք (hy) (patrankʿ)
- Basque: irudipen, ameskeria (eu), itxaropen (eu)
- Bulgarian: илюзия (bg) f (iljuzija)
- Catalan: il·lusió (ca) f, (Algherese) illusió
- Chinese:
- Mandarin: 幻覺／幻觉 (zh) (huànjué), 幻想 (zh) (huànxiǎng)
- Czech: iluze (cs) f
- Danish: illusion c
- Dutch: illusie (nl) f, zinsbegoocheling (nl) f
- Esperanto: iluzio
- Estonian: näiline
- Finnish: illuusio (fi), havaintoharha, harha (fi), harhanäky, näköharha (fi)
- French: illusion (fr) f
- Georgian: ილუზია (iluzia)
- German: Illusion (de) f, Wahnvorstellung (de) f, Sinnestäuschung f
- Greek: ψευδαίσθηση (el) f (psevdaísthisi)
- Hebrew: אשליה (he) f (ashlaya)
- Hindi: भ्रम (hi) (bhram)
- Hungarian: illúzió (hu)
- Ido: iluziono (io)
- Indonesian: ilusi (id)
- Italian: illusione (it) f
- Japanese: 幻覚 (ja) (げんかく, genkaku), 幻想 (ja) (げんそう, gensō)
- Korean: 환각(幻覺) (ko) (hwan’gak), 환상 (ko) (hwansang)
- Latvian: acu māns m
- Ligurian: illüziùn
- Lithuanian: iliuzija f
- Macedonian: илу́зија f (ilúzija), фатаморга́на f (fatamorgána), ма́мка f (mámka), при́вид m (prívid)
- Malayalam: മിഥ്യാബോധം (mithyābōdhaṃ)
- Maltese: illużjoni
- Maori: pohewa, whakahewa
- Norwegian:
- Bokmål: illusjon m
- Nynorsk: illusjon m
- Persian: وهم (fa) (vahm)
- Polish: złudzenie (pl) n, iluzja (pl) f, ułuda
- Portuguese: ilusão (pt) f
- Romanian: iluzie (ro) f
- Russian: иллю́зия (ru) f (illjúzija), наважде́ние (ru) n (navaždénije)
- Sanskrit: माया (sa) f (māyā)
- Serbo-Croatian: opsena (sh) f
- Slovak: ilúzia f
- Slovene: iluzija (sl) f
- Spanish: ilusión (es) f
- Swedish: illusion (sv) c, synvilla (sv) c
- Tagalog: tagimpan, panagimpan
- Thai: ภาพลวงตา (th) (paa pluang dtaa)
- Turkish: yanılsama (tr), yanılgı (tr)
- Welsh: rhith f
- Yiddish: אילוזיע f (iluzye)
belief in something that is in fact not true
- Bulgarian: илюзия (bg) f (iljuzija)
- Chinese:
- Mandarin: 幻想 (zh) (huànxiǎng), 幻覺／幻觉 (zh) (huànjué)
- Danish: illusion c
- Dutch: illusie (nl) f
- Finnish: harhakuvitelma (fi), harhaluulo (fi), harha (fi), harhausko
- Georgian: ილუზია (iluzia)
- German: Illusion (de) f
- Greek: ψευδαίσθηση (el) f (psevdaísthisi), πλάνη (el) f (pláni)
- Japanese: 幻想 (ja) (げんそう, gensō)
- Macedonian: при́вид m (prívid)
- Norwegian:
- Bokmål: illusjon m
- Nynorsk: illusjon m
- Polish: iluzja (pl) f
- Russian: иллю́зия (ru) f (illjúzija)
- Serbo-Croatian: opsena (sh) f
- Swedish: illusion (sv) c, förvillelse c
magician’s trick
- Bulgarian: илюзия (bg) f (iljuzija)
- Danish: illusion c
- Dutch: illusie (nl) f, truuk (nl) m, trick (nl) m
- Estonian: võlutrikk, illusioon
- Finnish: illuusio (fi), taikatemppu (fi)
- French: illusion (fr) f
- Georgian: ილუზიონი (iluzioni)
- Greek: κόπλο n (kóplo)
- Hebrew: אשליה (he) f (ashlaya)
- Latin: praestīgiae f pl
- Macedonian: илу́зија f (ilúzija )
- Polish: iluzja (pl)
- Russian: иллю́зия (ru) f (illjúzija)
- Swedish: illusion (sv) c, trick (sv) n
Danish[edit]
Etymology[edit]
From French illusion, from Latin illūsio.
Noun[edit]
illusion c (singular definite illusionen, plural indefinite illusioner)
- illusion
Inflection[edit]
Further reading[edit]
- “illusion” in Den Danske Ordbog
French[edit]
Etymology[edit]
Borrowed from Latin illusionem.
Pronunciation[edit]
- IPA(key): /i.ly.zjɔ̃/, /il.ly.zjɔ̃/
-
Audio (France, Paris) (file) - Rhymes: -ɔ̃
- Homophone: illusions
Noun[edit]
illusion f (plural illusions)
- illusion
Derived terms[edit]
- illusion d’optique
[edit]
- illusoire
- illusoirement
Descendants[edit]
- → Danish: illusion
Further reading[edit]
- “illusion”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.
Swedish[edit]
Pronunciation[edit]
- IPA(key): /ɪlɵˈɧuːn/
Noun[edit]
illusion c
- an illusion
Declension[edit]
| Declension of illusion | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Singular | Plural | |||
| Indefinite | Definite | Indefinite | Definite | |
| Nominative | illusion | illusionen | illusioner | illusionerna |
| Genitive | illusions | illusionens | illusioners | illusionernas |
[edit]
- illusorisk
See also[edit]
- illustration
- illustrera
- synvilla
- trick