Synonyms

enlighten

American

[en-lahyt-n] / ɛnˈlaɪt n /

verb (used with object)

to give intellectual or spiritual light to; instruct; impart knowledge to.

We hope the results of our research will enlighten our colleagues.

Synonyms:

inform, teach, edify, illumine

Antonyms:

puzzle, perplex, confuse, mystify
Archaic. to shed light upon.

enlighten British

/ ɪnˈlaɪtən /

verb

to give information or understanding to; instruct; edify
to free from ignorance, prejudice, or superstition
to give spiritual or religious revelation to
poetic to shed light on

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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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.

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Vocabulary lists containing enlighten

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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.

See Examples For:

enlighten enlightens enlightened enlightening

A director who loves our country and wants to enlighten us with consequential historical exhibits would be a better fit.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 4, 2026

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

I can give Bill something that people don’t understand and progress the story and maybe enlighten people.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 28, 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 have read your letters to poor Lucy, and know how good you are and how your husband suffer; so I pray you, if it may be, enlighten him not, lest it may harm.

From "Dracula" by Bram Stoker

There's not a lot of focus on music that enlightens people, and that carries over to other products as well.

From Salon ● Jun. 17, 2023

This is her place to retreat inward with her sheep to create prose that enlightens us and products that feed us.

From Seattle Times ● Jun. 16, 2023

This is why “Catch the Fair One” ultimately disappoints more than it enlightens.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 11, 2022

Must-see TV: When They See Us, Ava DuVernay’s miniseries about the lives at the heart of the Central Park Five, informs and enlightens audiences—but as Willa Paskin reviews, entertainment is not its core purpose.

From Slate ● May 30, 2019

“You are like he was,” Keith enlightens me, “and just like him, you were most likely to die the same way—a quarter of what you could have been....”

From "I Am the Messenger" by Markus Zusak

Or should the seemingly enlightened Norwegians be more understanding?

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2026

It also revealed that I’ve been fibbing to myself: Much as I consider myself enlightened, being unmanly in an era that worships machismo does bug me a little.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 12, 2026

When you see a really good player, that’s a rara avis — an enlightened individual.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 4, 2026

He’s on the board of the Museum of Modern Art in New York and received its David Rockefeller Award, given to an “individual from the business community who exemplifies enlightened generosity.”

From Barron's ● Jun. 18, 2026

"O enlightened Vizier," said the Tisroc, "bestow your wisdom upon us concerning this strange proposal."

From "The Horse and His Boy" by C.S. Lewis

Nevertheless, it’s an enlightening read in light of how dramatically war has changed in the last two-and-a-half centuries.

From Salon ● Jul. 4, 2026

"Together, these records offer a more complex and enlightening account of the Revolution, showing how its consequences were felt far beyond the Thirteen Colonies," Cunningham added.

From Barron's ● Jun. 22, 2026

But the Glass year is already officially underway with two curiously enlightening projects this month.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 21, 2026

The people who say it don’t understand how enlightening the observation is.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 30, 2026

“Once, briefly. It wasn't exactly an enlightening conversation. Mind telling me more?”

From "Dread Nation" by Justina Ireland

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023