enlightenment

[en-lahyt-n-muhnt]

noun

1. the act of enlightening.

2. the state of being enlightened.

   to live in spiritual enlightenment.

3. (usually initial capital letter),  prajna.

4. the Enlightenment, a philosophical movement of the 18th century, characterized by belief in the power of human reason and by innovations in political, religious, and educational doctrine.

enlightenment

¹

/ ɪnˈlaɪtənmənt /

noun

1. the act or means of enlightening or the state of being enlightened

2. Buddhism the awakening to ultimate truth by which man is freed from the endless cycle of personal reincarnations to which all men are otherwise subject

3. Hinduism a state of transcendent divine experience represented by Vishnu: regarded as a goal of all religion

Enlightenment

²

/ ɪnˈlaɪtənmənt /

noun

1. an 18th-century philosophical movement stressing the importance of reason and the critical reappraisal of existing ideas and social institutions

Enlightenment

1. An intellectual movement of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries marked by a celebration of the powers of human reason, a keen interest in science, the promotion of religious toleration, and a desire to construct governments free of tyranny. Some of the major figures of the Enlightenment were David Hume, Immanuel Kant, John Locke, the Baron de Montesquieu, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, and Voltaire.

Other Word Forms

• preenlightenment noun
• reenlightenment noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of enlightenment¹

First recorded in 1660–70; enlighten + -ment

Example Sentences

The “Monkey King” premiere took place the day after the final performance of Matthew Ozawa’s thoughtful new production of Wagner’s “Parsifal,” a very different tale about ignorance and enlightenment.

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These enlightenment heroes, manifesting in our present day as populists, compel Gen Z to become disillusioned with the establishment and support radical ideas on both sides of the aisle.

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Few topics have been discussed more, to less human enlightenment, than whether women can “have it all”—usually defined as blending marriage, professional ambition and children.

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At first, Lanthimos uses her character as a spoof of lady-bosses who feign enlightenment while reigning over the same bad workplace.

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Indeed, as a viewer in search of entertainment rather than enlightenment, it’s best to treat these characters, however much attached they are to the real people whose names they bear, as entirely fictional.

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Related Words

• awareness 
• civilization 
• insight 
• literacy 
• sophistication 
• understanding 
• wisdom