enlighten
Americanverb
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to give information or understanding to; instruct; edify
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to free from ignorance, prejudice, or superstition
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to give spiritual or religious revelation to
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poetic to shed light on
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of enlighten
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English enli(g)htenen; see en- 1, lighten 1
Explanation
To enlighten someone means to explain something clearly to him. If your friend is behaving strangely but insists she has a reason for it, you could ask her to enlighten you. Enlighten comes from the metaphor that ignorance is a state of being "in the dark," and that knowledge is illuminating. We use enlighten as a verb meaning to clear up, to remove confusion. Light is also a powerful metaphor for spiritual insight. If you have a great revelation about the divinity of the world, you could say you have been enlightened. The era known as the "Age of Reason" is also called the Enlightenment.
Vocabulary lists containing enlighten
"The Odyssey" by Homer, Books 14–18
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Ronald Reagan, "Tear Down This Wall" (1987)
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The Titan's Curse
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Some of those eagerly sought to enlighten their charges, while a few others grew to see – or claimed to see – an unbridgeable chasm between the ivory tower and mass cultural aspiration.
From Salon • Apr. 19, 2026
Its narrative offers few character sketches, jumps around in time and digresses into subjects that distract more than they enlighten.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 3, 2026
So can you enlighten us as to the great wisdom Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito share in their own concurrences?
From Slate • Jun. 18, 2025
"I think in the spirit of the bikers, Dave would want me to continue to have fun and to educate, to inform, to enlighten, to be slightly edgy," he says.
From BBC • Dec. 6, 2024
“What am I doing here, Strange? Are you going to enlighten me?”
From "Strange the Dreamer" by Laini Taylor
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
