In conversation during the last few months, I have brought up the idiom of an "elephant in the room" a couple of times. I am constantly surprised that no one has heard this saying! People look at me with blank eyes searching for some meaning in my comment, and then I try to explain - unsuccessfully I'm sure.
Here's the wikipedia explanation: "The elephant in the room (
also elephant in the living room, elephant in the parlor, elephant in the corner, elephant on the dinner table, elephant in the kitchen, elephant on the coffee table, and horse in the corner) is an
English idiom for an obvious truth that is being ignored or goes unaddressed. It is based on the idea that an elephant in a room would be impossible to overlook; thus, people in the room who pretend the elephant is not there might be concerning themselves with relatively small and even irrelevant matters, compared to the looming big one."
For example: A relative has received bad news, which has trickled through the grapevine to the entire family. At a gathering, everyone is chatting about all sorts of subjects, specifically avoiding that one topic, although everyone in the room is aware and likely thinking about that information at one point or another during the gathering.
Ta-da!
Now you know ... and you can use it ... just make sure you don't say "white elephant in the room", because that has an entirely different meaning!
