1. the quality of being difficult to find, catch, or achieve; the state of evading or escaping
2. the quality of being hard to define, describe, or pin down; vagueness or indefiniteness

Examples

• The elusiveness of the suspect made the investigation extremely challenging.
• The elusiveness of happiness is a common theme in philosophy.
• Critics praised the film's elusiveness—its refusal to offer easy answers.
• The elusiveness of the perfect solution frustrated the team.
• She appreciated the elusiveness of his charm; it kept her intrigued.
• The elusiveness of the butterfly made it difficult for the collector to capture.
• The elusiveness of the concept made it hard for students to understand.