elucidate
verb
transitive verb
intransitive verb
Did you know?
Elucidate comes from the Latin term lucidus, which means "lucid." Lucidus, in turn, comes from the verb lucēre, meaning "to shine." So elucidating can be thought of as the figurative equivalent of shining a light on something to make it easier to see.
Synonyms
- clarify
- clear (up)
- construe
- demonstrate
- demystify
- explain
- explicate
- expound
- get across
- illuminate
- illustrate
- interpret
- simplify
- spell out
- unriddle
Example Sentences
David Hochman, Forbes, 15 Aug. 2022 Myriad efforts are underway to elucidate the condition—or multiple conditions. Erin Prater, Fortune, 4 Aug. 2022 James Bardeen, who helped elucidate the properties and behavior of black holes, setting the stage for what has been called the golden age of black hole astrophysics, died on June 20 in Seattle. New York Times, 3 July 2022 Although qualitative measurements are important and businesses must be profitable to stay alive, the math will not elucidate employers. Ryan Vet, Forbes, 7 Dec. 2021 Authorities have published intricate flow charts to try to elucidate the various routes to tanchuang. Pei-lin Wu, Washington Post, 24 May 2022 Pinterest declined to elucidate whether the difference was due to rounding. Laura Forman, WSJ, 2 May 2022 His vivid descriptions of some of the Parrotheads who have flocked to these developments elucidate Americans’ growing fascination with unconventional retirement scenarios. The New Yorker, 18 Apr. 2022 Parents that participated in the ZURU study also helped to elucidate this point. Jennifer "jay" Palumbo, Forbes, 25 Mar. 2022 See More Word History
Late Latin elucidatus, past participle of elucidare, from Latin e- + lucidus lucid
circa 1568, in the meaning defined at transitive sense
elucidate
verb
Synonyms & Similar Words
- explain
- clarify
- illustrate
- demonstrate
- explicate
- illuminate
- simplify
- interpret
- expound
- demystify
- construe
- analyze
- define
- get across
- spell out
- resolve
- decipher
- unriddle
- solve
- specify
- clear (up)
- unravel
- decode
- disentangle
- unscramble
- untangle
- annotate
- undo
- gloss
- break down
- commentate
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- obscure
- confuse
- confound
- cloud
- obfuscate
- befog
Synonym Chooser
Some common synonyms of elucidate are explain, explicate, expound, and interpret. While all these words mean "to make something clear or understandable," elucidate stresses the throwing of light upon as by offering details or motives previously unclear or only implicit.
While the synonyms explain and elucidate are close in meaning, explain implies a making plain or intelligible what is not immediately obvious or entirely known.
The meanings of explicate and elucidate largely overlap; however, explicate adds the idea of a developed or detailed analysis.
The words expound and elucidate are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, expound implies a careful often elaborate explanation.
Interpret adds to explain the need for imagination or sympathy or special knowledge in dealing with something.
- recidivous
- Recife
- recifes
- recip
- recipe
- recipe book
- recipe for disaster
- recipes
- recipher
- recipience
- recipiences
- recipiencies
- recipiency
- recipient
- recipients
- reciprocal
- reciprocal alphabet
- reciprocal demand
- reciprocal diagram
- reciprocal pronoun
- reciprocal quantities
- reciprocal ratio
- reciprocal switching
- reciprocal wills
- reciprocalities