Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
- adj. Tending to delude.
- adj. Having the nature of a delusion; false: a delusive faith in a wonder drug.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
- adj. Producing delusions.
- adj. Delusional.
- adj. Inappropriate to reality; forming part of a delusion.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English
- adj. Apt or fitted to delude; tending to mislead the mind; deceptive; beguiling; delusory
from The Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- Apt to delude; causing delusion; deceptive; beguiling: as, delusive arts; delusive appearances.
- Of the nature of a delusion; unreal; imaginary.
- Synonyms See fallacious and deceptive.
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- adj. inappropriate to reality or facts
Etymologies
Examples
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France, by the perfidy of her leaders, has utterly disgraced the tone of lenient counsel in the cabinets of princes, and has taught kings to tremble at what will hereafter be called the delusive plausibilities of moral politicians.
The World's Greatest Books — Volume 14 — Philosophy and Economics
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Cook called the delusive point Cape Flattery and added: "It is in this very latitude (48 degrees 15 minutes) that geographers have placed the pretended Straits of Juan de Fuca; but we saw nothing like it; nor is there the least possibility that any such thing ever existed."
Vikings of the Pacific The Adventures of the Explorers who Came from the West, Eastward
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The alternative will be called delusive, for, in European literature at least, there is no word-symbol that does not imply a spoken sound, and no excellence without euphony.
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In fact, the same 'delusive' powers which he had earlier employed when dancing with the cowgirls -- making each believe he was dancing with her and her alone -- are now being used to satisfy his wives.
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Therefore the learning of many languages is injudicious, inasmuch as it arouses the belief in the possession of dexterity, and, as a matter of fact, it lends a kind of delusive importance to social intercourse.
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Eastern peasants, living in the very thick of every conceivable kind of delusive influence.
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In 1924, during the delusive era of "Coolidge Prosperity" when the Republicans ran the incumbent "Silent Cal" and the Democrats a Wall Street lawyer, John W. Davis, the shrinking cadre of surviving beleaguered Progressives lacked a candidate worth voting for.
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But not all shifts in public opinion are delusive or temporary.
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Those performing English/French translation must be aware however, of the many delusive cognates, known as ‘false friends,’ in the two nomenclatures.
French/english Translation: the Unusual History of the English Language « Articles « Literacy News
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There's something deeper, more repugnant; a quality so malignant that people literally waste years of their precious lives in its delusive grasp: Self-Importance.
Graham Elliot Bowles GOES OFF On Chicago Magazine After Lollapalooza Food Criticism
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