white elephant

1. A rare whitish or light-gray form of the Asian elephant, often considered sacred in parts of South and Southeast Asia.

2. A possession that provides few benefits and is an inconvenience or a financial burden to maintain.

[Sense 2, in reference to a story that when the kings of Siam wished to ruin an offending courtier, they would give him a white elephant, which the courtier then had to maintain at great expense.]

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

white elephant

1. (Animals) a rare albino or pale grey variety of the Indian elephant, regarded as sacred in parts of S Asia

2. a possession that is unwanted by its owner

3. an elaborate venture, construction, etc, that proves useless

4. a rare or valuable possession the upkeep of which is very expensive

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

white′ el′ephant

1. a possession unwanted by the owner but difficult to dispose of.

2. a possession entailing great expense out of proportion to its value to the owner.

3. an albino Indian elephant.

[1850–55; from the tale that the King of Siam would award a disagreeable courtier a white elephant, the upkeep of which would ruin the courtier]

white elephant

- The name of this animal, which has an enormous appetite, has come to mean "useless, expensive possession"—or a possession that is more trouble than it is worth.

white elephant

n (fam) → cattedrale f nel deserto

Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

white

(wait) adjective

1. of the colour of the paper on which these words are printed. The bride wore a white dress.

2. having light-coloured skin, through being of European etc descent. the first white man to explore Africa.

3. abnormally pale, because of fear, illness etc. He went white with shock.

4. with milk in it. A white coffee, please.

noun

1. the colour of the paper on which these words are printed. White and black are opposites.

2. a white-skinned person. racial trouble between blacks and whites.

3. (also ˈegg-white) the clear fluid in an egg, surrounding the yolk. This recipe tells you to separate the yolks from the whites.

4. (of an eye) the white part surrounding the pupil and iris. The whites of her eyes are bloodshot.

ˈwhiten verb

to make or become white or whiter. She used a little bleach to whiten the sheets.

ˈwhiteness noun

ˈwhitening noun

a substance used to make certain things (eg tennis shoes) white again.

ˈwhitish adjective

fairly white; close to white.

ˌwhite-ˈcollar adjective

(of workers, jobs etc) not manual; (working) in an office etc.

white elephant

a useless, unwanted possession.

white horse noun

(usually in plural) a wave that has a crest of white foam.

ˌwhite-ˈhot adjective

(of metals) so hot that they have turned white. a white-hot poker.

white lie

a not very serious lie. I'd rather tell my mother a white lie than tell her the truth and upset her.

ˈwhitewash noun

a mixture of usually lime and water, used for whitening walls.

verb

to cover with whitewash.

ˈwhitewashed adjective

white winewine

Noun	1.	white elephant - a valuable possession whose upkeep is excessively expensive possession - anything owned or possessed
	2.	white elephant - albinic Indian elephant; rare and sometimes venerated in east Asia Elephas maximus, Indian elephant - Asian elephant having smaller ears and tusks primarily in the male