illuminating

American  

[ih-loo-muh-ney-ting] / ɪˈlu məˌneɪ tɪŋ /

adjective

1. giving or casting light.

2. informative; enlightening.

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illuminating British  

/ ɪˈluːmɪˌneɪtɪŋ /

adjective

1. serving to inform or clarify; instructive

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Other Word Forms

• illuminatingly adverb
• nonilluminating adjective
• nonilluminatingly adverb
• unilluminating adjective

Etymology

Origin of illuminating

First recorded in 1555–65; illuminat(e) + -ing ²

Example Sentences

With incense hanging in the air, and sunlight illuminating gold-painted biblical murals on the cathedral walls, the priest urged mourners to help others, too.

From Barron's

For Cignetti, the experience at Alabama was especially illuminating, since he caught the program at a rare moment.

From The Wall Street Journal

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

I also began Joseph Torigian’s “The Party’s Interests Come First,” an illuminating study of the father of China’s current ruler.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• enlightening