illuminate

American  

[ih-loo-muh-neyt, ih-loo-muh-nit, -neyt] / ɪˈlu məˌneɪt, ɪˈlu mə nɪt, -ˌneɪt /

verb (used with object)

illuminated, illuminating

1. to supply or brighten with light; light up.

2. to make lucid or clear; throw light on (a subject).

   Synonyms:

   elucidate, explain, clarify

3. to decorate with lights, as in celebration.

4. to enlighten, as with knowledge.

5. to make resplendent or illustrious.

   A smile illuminated her face.

6. to decorate (a manuscript, book, etc.) with colors and gold or silver, as was often done in the Middle Ages.

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verb (used without object)

illuminated, illuminating

1. to display lights, as in celebration.

2. to become illuminated.

adjective

1. Archaic. illuminated.

2. Obsolete. enlightened.

noun

1. Archaic. a person who is or affects to be specially enlightened.

illuminate British  

verb

1. (tr) to throw light in or into; light up

   to illuminate a room

2. (tr) to make easily understood; clarify

3. to adorn, decorate, or be decorated with lights

4. (tr) to decorate (a letter, page, etc) by the application of colours, gold, or silver

5. (intr) to become lighted up

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adjective

1. archaic made clear or bright with light; illuminated

noun

1. a person who has or claims to have special enlightenment

Other Word Forms

• illuminatingly adverb
• illuminative adjective
• illuminator noun
• preilluminate verb (used with object)
• reilluminate verb
• semi-illuminated adjective
• unilluminated adjective

Etymology

Origin of illuminate

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Latin illūminātus, past participle of illūmināre “to light up, brighten”; illumine ( def. ), -ate ¹ ( def. )

Example Sentences

He would become a pre-eminent scholar of disasters and spend the rest of his long career illuminating the corrosive, collective traumas left in their wake.

From The Wall Street Journal

Some suspects leave behind illuminating writings or social-media posts, but others leave little for authorities to investigate.

From The Wall Street Journal

It will include comedy, live art, installations, the illuminated wonderland of Lost Eden, Kids Calling, parties, talks, films and parades.

From BBC

But it’s the deeper complexities of Anna’s situation that Williams illuminates so powerfully.

From Los Angeles Times

A Rydberg atom is defined as having a single electron excited to a very high orbit by being illuminated with precisely tuned lasers.

From Science Daily

Related Words

• clarify
• define
• dramatize
• elucidate
• explain
• illustrate