The elephant in the room refers to a question, problem, solution, or controversial issue which is obvious to everyone who knows about the situation but which is deliberately ignored because to do otherwise would cause great embarrassment, sadness, or arguments or is simply taboo.

For example:

The elephant in the room between couples is often money or what to do with aging parents.

When I had dinner with my parents, the elephant in the room was the fact that I’m 45 years old and still single.

There was an elephant in the dining room this evening when my brother sat down at the table with a black eye.

Tradução: uma expressão metafórica para um problema ou risco que está obviamente presente, mas ninguém deseja discutir, por ser mais confortável agir assim, o elefante na sala.