explicit

[ ik-splis-it ]

See synonyms for: explicit explicitly explicitness on Thesaurus.com

adjective

fully and clearly expressed or demonstrated; leaving nothing merely implied; unequivocal: explicit instructions; an explicit act of violence; explicit language.
clearly developed or formulated: explicit knowledge; explicit belief.

definite and unreserved in expression; outspoken: He was quite explicit as to what he expected us to do for him.
having sexual acts or nudity clearly depicted: explicit movies; explicit books.
Mathematics. (of a function) having the dependent variable expressed directly in terms of the independent variables, as y = 3x + 4.: Compare implicit (def. 4).

Origin of explicit

First recorded in 1605–15; from Latin explicitus “unfolded, set forth,” variant past participle of explicāre; see origin at explicate

Other words for explicit

1	express, definite, precise, exact, unambiguous
3	open, forthright, unabashed

See synonyms for explicit on Thesaurus.com

Opposites for explicit

1	indefinite, ambiguous

See antonyms for explicit on Thesaurus.com

Other words from explicit

ex·plic·it·ly, adverb
ex·plic·it·ness, noun
o·ver·ex·plic·it, adjective
qua·si-ex·plic·it, adjective
su·per·ex·plic·it, adjective
un·ex·plic·it, adjective

Words that may be confused with explicit

explicit , implicit, implied

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use explicit in a sentence

Explicitness and vulgarity are both different subsets of honesty, both very necessary.
The Modern ‘Lolita’: Dramatizing the Mind of a Female Pedophile in Alissa Nutting’s ‘Tampa’ | Roxane Gay | June 28, 2013 | THE DAILY BEAST
Where do you see the line between explicitness and vulgarity?
The Modern ‘Lolita’: Dramatizing the Mind of a Female Pedophile in Alissa Nutting’s ‘Tampa’ | Roxane Gay | June 28, 2013 | THE DAILY BEAST
How did you come up with the idea for Tampa, and how did you commit to the explicitness?
The Modern ‘Lolita’: Dramatizing the Mind of a Female Pedophile in Alissa Nutting’s ‘Tampa’ | Roxane Gay | June 28, 2013 | THE DAILY BEAST
It was unfair to go further without telling her, even though, hitherto, such explicitness had not been absolutely demanded.
The Well-Beloved | Thomas Hardy
The Colonel was told why not with explicitness and vehemence.
A Change of Air | Anthony Hope

For we are told with the utmost explicitness precisely what is to be done.
The Profits of Religion, Fifth Edition | Upton Sinclair
How he dreaded that terrible explicitness of women, their passion for tidying up, their love of labels!
The Limit | Ada Leverson
It may help to explain an explicitness in the use of terms more usual in the physician perhaps than in the layman.
The Conflict of Religions in the Early Roman Empire | T. R. Glover

British Dictionary definitions for explicit (1 of 2)

explicit¹

/ (ɪkˈsplɪsɪt) /

adjective

precisely and clearly expressed, leaving nothing to implication; fully stated: explicit instructions
graphically detailed, leaving little to the imagination: sexually explicit scenes

openly expressed without reservations; unreserved
maths (of a function) having an equation of the form y=f (x), in which y is expressed directly in terms of x, as in y=x 4 + x + z: Compare implicit (def. 4)

Origin of explicit

C17: from Latin explicitus unfolded, from explicāre; see explicate

Derived forms of explicit

explicitly, adverb
explicitness, noun

British Dictionary definitions for explicit (2 of 2)

explicit²

/ (ɪkˈsplɪsɪt) /

the end; an indication, used esp by medieval scribes, of the end of a book, part of a manuscript, etc

Origin of explicit

Late Latin, probably short for explicitus est liber the book is unfolded (or complete); shortened by analogy with incipit

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

Browse