explainer

American  

[ik-spley-ner] / ɪkˈspleɪ nər /

noun

1. a person, document, video, etc., that explains something (often used attributively).

   an explainer article that gives the reader background information about a news story.

---

Etymology

Origin of explainer

First recorded in 1575–1600; explain ( def. ) + -er ¹ ( def. )

Example Sentences

In the broader conversation around the study, this very magazine ran an explainer on the trial and deemed it, overall, to be “shoddy science.”

From Slate • Jan. 30, 2026

When the movie was coming out, people really liked that the explainer video that Ryan made about all the different formats.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 22, 2026

You can review this earlier WSJ explainer that gives a bit more context about what a fume event is and how it can happen.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 23, 2025

Treasuries—see Barron’s explainer of the yen carry trade, which has funded U.S. government debt purchases for years.

From Barron's • Dec. 4, 2025

He advised my attending certain places in London, for the acquisition of such mere rudiments as I wanted, and my investing him with the functions of explainer and director of all my studies.

From Great Expectations by Dickens, Charles

Related Words

• linguist