edifying
Americanadjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of edifying
Explanation
Anything edifying is enlightening. Edifying things uplift people intellectually or morally and help them learn. Good literature, art, and music are edifying. The original meaning of edify was "to build," and things that are edifying build up a person, especially in an intellectual or moral way. It’s often used in the negative. If you say something is not edifying, you mean that it’s unpleasant and unacceptable. Edifying applies to things that help you become a better person. A wise saying is edifying. A powerful documentary is edifying. The words of a good teacher are often edifying. Word definitions are definitely edifying!
Vocabulary lists containing edifying
First Man: The Life of Neil A. Armstrong
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A Farewell To Arms
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Crime and Punishment
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
For Jane Fleischer Reid, granddaughter of Betty Boop co-creator Max Fleischer and creator of Fabulous Fleischer Cartoons Restored, working with Buermann on Boop’s birthday party was “delightful” and edifying.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 19, 2026
They prepare students to discern right from wrong, truth from lies—a process so edifying it can be, as Mr. Kessler advises, as “fun” and “addictive” as any tech.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 14, 2025
There’s nothing here that the viewer can’t glean from the documentary, and in fact, the doc is a far more edifying and affecting work than Safdie’s stylish regurgitation.
From Salon ● Oct. 4, 2025
Nik goes further and says it was "absolutely edifying".
From BBC ● Nov. 29, 2024
They were labeled with edifying placards that said Traditional Kerala Umbrella and Traditional Bridal Dowry-box.
From "The God of Small Things" by Arundhati Roy
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
