Elicit comes from elicitus, illicit from illicitus.

The Latin ancestors of this pair are easy to confuse too. In a side experiment, the researchers treated a Merlot sample with benzothiadiazole-a hormone known to elicit plant defenses-which nearly tripled the Merlot's melatonin levels. The word's original meaning, 'to draw or bring out (something latent or potential),' is less common but is still current: Denise Grady, The New York Times, 23 Apr. Three lost souls with heart-rending stories, they clicked their way to Internet support groups, where they elicited outpourings of sympathy from fellow sufferers. Sherri Leimkuhler, The Carroll County (Maryland) Times, 15 Sept. In contemporary English it's used to talk about calling forth or drawing out a response or reaction from someone:ĭuring the concert (which was amazing) the lead singer gave several impassioned speeches about kindness and acceptance, which elicited roars of approval from the crowd. Alas, her wacky DNA means she's infertile, so don't expect a zonkeydonk.Įlicit, on the other hand, is a verb. Their offspring? A zonkey, of course, which zookeepers promptly named Ippo. Just call them Romeo and Zoo-liet: a male zebra hopped a fence at an Italian animal preserve to mate with his seemingly illicit lover, a female donkey. David Halberstam, American Heritage, May/June 1993 When the decade of the fifties began, sex was still something of an illicit subject in America. 2013īut, like its synonym unlawful, illicit also describes what may be legal but is still otherwise not permitted, especially because it is outside moral norms: Jason Anderson, The Record (Stockton, California), 23 Feb. He is credited with taking a number of illegal firearms and illicit drugs off the streets. Illicit can be useful as an alternative to the word illegal:

… before 1920, women had hesitated to drink in public alongside men, but the glamorously illicit atmosphere of speakeasies dissolved that taboo. The word is also sometimes used to evoke a mood related to what is not permitted:

Three years ago, when James joined Ghana's anti-smuggling task force, his job was to intercept illicit cocoa shipments from neighboring Ivory Coast to preserve the superior quality of his country's beans. … Silk Road, a dark web bazaar where users could buy and sell drugs and other illicit items, often using bitcoin. Something illicit is not permitted especially because it is illegal: It's used to talk about things people aren't supposed to do. Illicit is an adjective applied to no-nos.

Illicit activity synonym