enlightening

American

[en-lahyt-n-ing] / ɛnˈlaɪt n ɪŋ /

adjective

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 Word Forms

Etymology

Origin of enlightening

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

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.

With six politicians vying for your attention, these debates can be noisy and argumentative, but they can also be enlightening and influential.

From BBC • Apr. 28, 2026

But instead of simply riding or feeding the frenzy, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, stakes out enlightening new ground in “Frida: The Making of an Icon,” on view through May 17.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 1, 2026

Rovere, on the other hand, found the book to be “barren of ideas and imagination,” and “scarcely more interesting or enlightening than the day-by-day newspaper accounts.”

From Salon • Mar. 7, 2026

Lily-May, 18, also from Shimna Integrated College, said while it was "enlightening" meeting other young people passionate about the climate, most of her peers are "not really engaged".

From BBC • Nov. 12, 2025

Seeing Mamá acting so coy and proper on the sofa next to Special Agent Gonzales had been enlightening to say the least.

From "Summer of the Mariposas" by Guadalupe García McCall

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