ENGLISH
REFERENCE

gorilla in the room

idiom
Meaning

A problem or difficult issue that is very obvious, but is ignored for the convenience or comfort of those involved.


Origin

disputed origin

Blend of 800-pound gorilla + elephant in the room.

Examples
SIMPLE

Everyone ignores the gorilla in the room during our meetings.

CONTEXTUAL

The team discussed minor budget cuts while ignoring the gorilla in the room: the company was failing.

COMPLEX

Despite the obvious decline in sales, the board members refused to address the gorilla in the room, preferring to focus on trivial marketing updates instead.

Anchors to
Related idioms8entries
  1. 01

    800-pound gorilla

    An entity that dominates its environment.

  2. 02

    assume room temperature

    To die; to be killed.

  3. 03

    baby elephant in the room

    An obvious but mostly inconsequential issue.

  4. 04

    elephant in the room

    A problem or difficult issue that is very obvious, but is ignored for the convenience or comfort of those involved.

  5. 05

    get a room

    Used to instruct a couple to stop displaying romantic or physical affection in public.

  6. 06

    light up a room

    To possess great energy and appeal; to cause a social gathering to become animated and cheerful.

  7. 07

    locker room humor

    A type of humor involving jokes about crude and sexual topics.

  8. 08

    make room

    To rearrange or organize existing people, objects, furniture, belongings, etc., to create space for new objects.

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