lud
LatinVariants
Related Roots
About This Root
From Latin lūdere (to play), past participle lūsum. Prefixes transform 'play' into deception and avoidance: delude (play against, deceive), elude (play away from, escape), collude (play together secretly), illude/illusion (play tricks on perception). Prelude and interlude retain the neutral 'play' sense as musical/dramatic terms. Ludicrous means 'laughably playful.'
Associated Words
allude
To refer to something indirectly or by suggestion
allusion
An indirect reference to a person, event, or idea
collude
To conspire secretly for a dishonest purpose
collusion
A secret agreement to deceive or act illegally
collusive
Involving secret cooperation for a fraudulent purpose
delude
To deceive someone into believing something false
delusion
A false belief firmly held despite evidence to the contrary; the state of being misled
delusive
Creating false impressions; misleading
disillusion
To free someone from false beliefs or illusions; the state of disenchantment
disillusionment
Disappointment from discovering something is not as good as believed
elude
To cleverly escape or avoid; to be beyond someone's understanding
elusion
The act of cleverly escaping or avoiding
elusive
Difficult to find, catch, or understand
illusion
A false perception or belief; something that appears real but is not
illusionary
Relating to or producing an illusion; not real
illusionist
A performer who creates illusions using magic or sleight of hand
illusive
Based on illusion; deceptively unreal
illusory
Based on illusion; not real; deceptive
interlude
A pause or short entertainment between parts of a performance
ludicrous
So absurd or incongruous as to be amusing or invite ridicule
postlude
Music played at the end of a service; a concluding passage
prelude
An introductory event leading to something more important; a musical introduction
ridiculous
Absurd, foolish, or deserving of mockery