- to draw forth; evoke: to elicit an angry reply
- to cause to be revealed: to elicit facts
Origin of elicit
from Classical Latin elicitus, past participle of elicere, to draw out from e-, out + lacere, to entice, akin to laqueus: see lace
verb
Elicit is defined as to reveal information or to act.
An example of elicit is to get a confession from a suspect.
YourDictionary definition and usage example. Copyright © 2018 by LoveToKnow Corp
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"elicit." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 18 January 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/ELICIT>.
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elicit. (n.d.). Retrieved January 18th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/ELICIT
elicit
Webster's New World College Dictionary, Fifth Edition Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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MLA Style
"elicit." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 18 January 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/ELICIT>.
APA Style
elicit. (n.d.). Retrieved January 18th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/ELICIT
elicit
transitive verb
e·lic·it·ed, e·lic·it·ing, e·lic·itsTo call forth, draw out, or provoke (a response or reaction, for example): “Interrogators were reportedly frustrated by their inability to elicit useful information from him” ( Jane Mayer ) See Synonyms at evoke.
Origin of elicit
Latin ēlicere ēlicit- ē-, ex- ex- lacere to enticeRelated Forms:
- e·lic′i·ta′tion
noun
- e·lic′i·tor
noun
THE AMERICAN HERITAGE® DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, FIFTH EDITION by the Editors of the American Heritage Dictionaries. Copyright © 2016, 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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MLA Style
"elicit." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 18 January 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/ELICIT>.
APA Style
elicit. (n.d.). Retrieved January 18th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/ELICIT
Verb
(third-person singular simple present elicits, present participle eliciting, simple past and past participle elicited)
- To evoke, educe (emotions, feelings, responses, etc.); to generate, obtain, or provoke as a response or answer.
- To draw out, bring out, bring forth (something latent); to obtain information from someone or something.
- Fred wished to elicit the time of the meeting from Jane.
- Did you elicit a response?
- To use logic to arrive at truth; to derive by reason; deduce; construe.
Adjective
(not comparable)
- (obsolete) Elicited; drawn out; made real; open; evident.
Origin
Latin elicitus from elicere, to draw forth
English Wiktionary. Available under CC-BY-SA license.
Link to this page
Cite this page
MLA Style
"elicit." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 18 January 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/ELICIT>.
APA Style
elicit. (n.d.). Retrieved January 18th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/ELICIT
Sentence Examples
- It is important to elicit a suitable response from the children for each assembly.
- The new red wine is eliciting mixed reactions from wine experts.
- Feedback is elicited through questionnaires from all applicants who attend.
- He told stories about his past as a historian, even eliciting a few laughs from members of the crowd.
- It is difficult to elicit sympathy for a silly old man caught up in dark dealings.
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