clarification
Americannoun
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the act or an instance of making an idea or statement clear.
You may use a pencil to circle words, passages, or phrases that you don't understand or that need clarification.
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the removal of solid matter from a liquid so that it is clear or translucent.
The clarification of butter involves first melting it and then getting rid of all milk solids, leaving behind pure saturated fat.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of clarification
First recorded in 1570–80, for an earlier sense; from Latin clārificātiōn-, stem of clārificātiō “a making clear,” from clārificāre “to make clear”; see clarify ( def. ), -fication ( def. )
Explanation
Clarification is what you hope to achieve when you make an idea or concept less confusing and easier to understand. This often happens after a detailed or very clear explanation. Loudspeaker announcements in bus terminals and train stations are always so muffled and difficult to understand that it would be nice if you could at least find someone afterward who could provide clarification. In the realm of science, clarification is also the act of removing solid particles from a liquid so that it is more pure and, in some cases, so that it is transparent.
Vocabulary lists containing clarification
The Poet X
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The Things They Carried
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The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
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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.
But the White House secured a clarification from the Chinese that seemed to placate Trump.
From Los Angeles Times • May 17, 2026
When the BBC asked the Green Party for clarification, a spokesperson said: "Until relatively recently, Zack was living on a houseboat, which came with its own unique practical circumstances and considerations."
From BBC • May 14, 2026
"We are still awaiting clarification regarding the reasons for this decision, particularly in light of certain unanswered questions concerning US contributions," union chief Severine Deboos told AFP.
From Barron's • Apr. 24, 2026
And as her office made clear in a statement to Fox News: “The volume of misinformation — spread across social media and repeated in press coverage — made a clarification necessary. The facts are straightforward.”
From Salon • Apr. 15, 2026
The reasons, York surmised, were Teller’s association with Livermore and the AEC’s “absurdly strict secrecy policy,” which prevented the issuance of even a simple clarification of the roles of the two laboratories.
From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik
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.
