You all know what an elephant is right? If not, I’ll tell you…


An elephant is the largest mammal on the planet. They are native to Africa and Asia and eat plants. Elephants have big ears and a long trunk.

 

The word ‘elephant’ can be used as a slang term to describe a fat person (although I wouldn’t recommend using it!).

e.g. I’m not sitting next to Rosy on the bus! I’ll have no space, she’s an elephant.

Elephant idioms and sayings

Here’s a list of idioms with elephants.

popular idioms - animal idioms - elephant idioms and sayings

elephant in the room   

meaning – a controversial issue that is obvious but ignored
example – When are we going to talk about the elephant in the room? Our growing debt.

elephant idioms and sayings - elephant in the room

see pink elephants  

meaning – hallucinations caused by drink or drugs
example – Those pills we took were crazy. I saw pink elephants for days afterwards.

elephant idioms and sayings - see pink elephants

white elephant

meaning – a useless possession or investment
example – My caravan is a white elephant. The weather is always bad, so no one wants to rent it.

elephant idioms and sayings - white elephant

You can download a table of elephant idioms and sayings below.

If you’ve enjoyed this page, don’t forget to check out some more animal idioms by clicking on the links below.