explicate

[ek-spli-keyt]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR explicate ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object), ex·pli·cat·ed, ex·pli·cat·ing.

to make plain or clear; explain; interpret.

to develop (a principle, theory, etc.).

Origin of explicate

1525–35; < Latin explicātus unfolded, set forth, past participle of explicāre, equivalent to ex- ex-¹ + plicāre to fold; see -ate¹

Related formsex·pli·ca·tor, nounre·ex·pli·cate, verb (used with object), re·ex·pli·cat·ed, re·ex·pli·cat·ing.un·ex·pli·cat·ed, adjectivewell-ex·pli·cat·ed, adjective

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

Related Words for explicate

expound, elucidate, amplify, untangle, develop, dilate, expatiate, explain, unfold, demonstrate, construe, interpret, illustrate, enucleate

Examples from the Web for explicate

Historical Examples of explicate

This battle of Girondins and Mountain let no man ask history to explicate.
The World's Greatest Books, Vol XII.
Arthur Mee
But Marie say there is the miss understand in our letters she cannot explicate.
Deer Godchild
Marguerite Bernard and Edith Serrell
Whether, if so, this will not explicate the Phnomena of the Clouds.
Micrographia
Robert Hooke
We have merely to explicate the idea of intelligent spirit possessing being in its plenitude.
The Catholic World. Volume III; Numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6.
E. Rameur
Science takes as its province mechanical causes, and leaves formal and final causes to the philosopher to explicate.
A Critical History of Greek Philosophy
W. T. Stace

British Dictionary definitions for explicate

explicate

verb (tr) formal

to make clear or explicit; explain

to formulate or develop (a theory, hypothesis, etc)

Derived Formsexplicative (ɪkˈsplɪkətɪv) or explicatory (ɪkˈsplɪkətərɪ, -trɪ), adjectiveexplicator, noun

Word Origin for explicate

C16: from Latin explicāre to unfold, from plicāre to fold

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

Word Origin and History for explicate

1530s, from Latin explicatus, past participle of explicare "unfold, unravel, explain" (see explicit).