definitions

explanatory

[ ik-splan-uh-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee ]
/ ɪkˈsplæn əˌtɔr i, -ˌtoʊr i /
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adjective

serving to explain: an explanatory footnote.

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RELATED WORDS

supplementary, informative, analytical, interpretive, allegorical, critical, demonstrative, discursive, expository, graphic, illustrative, instructive, summary, enlightening, exegetic, explicative, hermeneutic, illuminative, annotative, declarative

Nearby words

explain, explain away, explain oneself, explanate, explanation, explanatory, explant, explement, explementary angle, expletive, explicable
Sometimes ex·plan·a·tive [ik-splan-uh-tiv] /ɪkˈsplæn ə tɪv/.

Origin of explanatory

From the Late Latin word explānātōrius, dating back to 1610–20. See explain, -tory1

Related forms

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for explanatory

British Dictionary definitions for explanatory

explanatory

explanative

/ (ɪkˈsplænətərɪ, -trɪ) /

adjective

serving or intended to serve as an explanation

Derived Forms

explanatorily, adverb
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