| 释义 |
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2024ˈwhite ˈel•e•phant, n. [countable]- a possession that is no longer wanted by the owner but is difficult to sell or dispose of.
- a possession that requires spending beyond its worth or value.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2024white′ el′ephant, - a possession unwanted by the owner but difficult to dispose of:Our Victorian bric-a-brac and furniture were white elephants.
- a possession entailing great expense out of proportion to its usefulness or value to the owner:When he bought the mansion he didn't know it was going to be such a white elephant.
- Mammalsan abnormally whitish or pale elephant, usually found in Thailand;
an albino elephant.
- from the perh. apocryphal tale that the King of Siam would award a disagreeable courtier a white elephant, the upkeep of which would ruin the courtier 1850–55
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers:: white elephant n - a rare albino or pale grey variety of the Indian elephant, regarded as sacred in parts of S Asia
- a possession that is unwanted by its owner
- an elaborate venture, construction, etc, that proves useless
- a rare or valuable possession the upkeep of which is very expensive
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