enlightening

[ en-lahyt-n-ing ]

adjective

1. informative, instructive, or eye-opening; giving intellectual or spiritual light:

   You are encouraged to watch this very enlightening video to better understand what small family farms are up against.

Other Words From

• en·light·en·ing·ly adverb
• non·en·light·en·ing adjective
• un·en·light·en·ing adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of enlightening¹

First recorded in 1570–80; enlighten ( def ) + -ing ²( def )

Example Sentences

Meyer inverted the traditional hierarchy that placed the customer first, creating a philosophy that he called “enlightened hospitality,” which argued that to make diners happy a business had first to make employees happy.

From Washington Post

The book is a critical study of the allegories Americans have lived by for more than two centuries, and how they continue to both enlighten and steer us wrong.

From Washington Post

But one of the most enlightening experiences was realizing how close all of this hits to home.

From The Daily Beast

The resulting text is both social commentary and annotated memoir—equal parts enlightening and enjoyable but sharp throughout.

From The Daily Beast

All in all, it was about as enlightening and informative than your usual presidential press conference.

From The Daily Beast

Yet it is occasionally enlightening to see that attitude given such clear and unequivocal expression.

From The Daily Beast

Reading this revealing book was both upsetting and enlightening and made me proud of my father for his foresight and courage.

From The Daily Beast

Not even the description of Wilbur had proved very enlightening.

From Project Gutenberg

He had been fond of talking to her about it, and enlightening her on some of its leading principles.

From Project Gutenberg

Owing to an overcast sky, the view was not a great deal more enlightening than that which we had had from below.

From Project Gutenberg

I think there were on the island (now occupied by the statue of Liberty Enlightening the World) about three hundred recruits.

From Project Gutenberg

Val felt instantly he was laughing at her for a kind of travesty of Liberty Enlightening the World.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• informative
• instructional
• instructive