DEFINITIONS

explain

[ ik-spleyn ]
/ ɪkˈspleɪn /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR explain ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object)

to make plain or clear; render understandable or intelligible: to explain an obscure point.
to make known in detail: to explain how to do something.
to assign a meaning to; interpret: How can you explain such a silly remark?
to make clear the cause or reason of; account for: I cannot explain his strange behavior.

verb (used without object)

to give an explanation.

Verb Phrases

explain away,
  1. to diminish or nullify the significance of by explanation: He couldn't explain away his absence from home at the time the robbery was committed.
  2. to dispel (doubts, difficulties, etc.) by explanation: She explained away the child's fears.

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Words related to explain

justify, resolve, excise, vindicate, deliberate, elucidate, extenuate, excuse, reason, think, reconcile, intellectualize

Words nearby explain

expiratory stridor, expire, expired gas, expiry, expiscate, explain, explain away, explain oneself, explanate, explanation, explanatory

Origin of explain

1375–1425; late Middle English explanen < Latin explānāre to smooth out, make intelligible, spread out on flat surface. See ex-1, plane1

OTHER WORDS FROM explain

synonym study for explain

1. Explain, elucidate, expound, interpret imply making the meaning of something clear or understandable. To explain is to make plain, clear, or intelligible something that is not known or understood: to explain a theory or a problem. To elucidate is to throw light on what before was dark and obscure, usually by illustration and commentary and sometimes by elaborate explanation: They asked him to elucidate his statement. To expound is to give a methodical, detailed, scholarly explanation of something, usually Scriptures, doctrines, or philosophy: to expound the doctrine of free will. To interpret is to give the meaning of something by paraphrase, by translation, or by an explanation based on personal opinion: to interpret a poem or a symbol.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

British Dictionary definitions for explain away (1 of 2)

explain away

verb

(tr, adverb) to offer excuses or reasons for (bad conduct, mistakes, etc)

British Dictionary definitions for explain away (2 of 2)

explain
/ (ɪkˈspleɪn) /

verb

(when tr, may take a clause as object) to make (something) comprehensible, esp by giving a clear and detailed account of the relevant structure, operation, surrounding circumstances, etc
(tr) to justify or attempt to justify (oneself) by giving reasons for one's actions or words

Derived forms of explain

explainable, adjectiveexplainer, noun

Word Origin for explain

C15: from Latin explānāre to flatten, from plānus level
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

Idioms and Phrases with explain away

explain away

Dismiss or minimize the importance of something, especially something detrimental. For example, “His words were taken down, and though he tried to explain them away, he was sent to the Tower” (Thomas Macaulay, The History of England, 1855). [c. 1700]

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.