illustration
Americannoun
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illustrations
plural
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something that illustrates, as a picture in a book or magazine.
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a comparison or an example intended for explanation or corroboration.
- Synonyms:
- explication
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the act or process of illuminating.
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the act of clarifying or explaining; elucidation.
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Archaic. illustriousness; distinction.
noun
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pictorial matter used to explain or decorate a text
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an example or demonstration
an illustration of his ability
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the act of illustrating or the state of being illustrated
Synonym Usage
See case 1.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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nonillustrationnoun
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overillustrationnoun
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preillustrationnoun
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reillustrationnoun
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superillustrationnoun
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illustrationaladjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of illustration
First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English, from Latin illustrātiōn- (stem of illustrātiō ) “the act of making vivid, illustrating”; see illustrate, -ion
Explanation
When the written instructions get tough, look for an illustration — a picture — to figure out what to do. Assembling furniture? Numbered diagrams and other illustrations can help you avoid the dreaded pile of "leftover" pieces. An illustration can also be a helpful example that isn't visual at all. A coworker who comes to work with a terrible cold and gives it to the whole office is an illustration of what happens when a boss discourages the use of sick days. You hope that the boss isn't an illustration of management at that company! If so, maybe these workers do need a visual: an illustration that shows hand-washing techniques and other ways to avoid germs.
Vocabulary lists containing illustration
Vocabulary of the Common Core
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TEKS ELAR Academic Vocabulary List (5th-7th grades)
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Florida EOC Biology 1
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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.
See Examples For:
In this illustration, colored areas identify frontoparietal regions that track uncertainty as participants encounter changes in associations they had previously learned.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 20, 2026
Squint, and it looks like an Art Deco anatomical illustration of our intestinal piping.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 15, 2026
The little boy adds a bright rainbow, a shining sun and a tall tree to his illustration, while other displaced children paint alongside him at a shelter in Pereira.
From Barron's ● Aug. 14, 2026
An animated Gabriel the Toad character and an illustration of Nogbad firing a cannon at the Ice Dragon both fetched £4,200.
From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026
She cries out when she finds an illustration of a greyhound.
From "The Inquisitor's Tale" by Adam Gidwitz
Nearly one in five teens already own a Cash App card, Templeton said, and the company allows users to customize their cards with colors, self-made illustrations and glow-in-the-dark features.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 22, 2026
A generous selection of historically relevant black-and-white illustrations is an added bonus.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026
The local department of culture said the illustrations had already been returned to the library, the security of which had been improved.
From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026
He obtained a college degree, is employed as a drug counselor, and still finds time to give back to the people through his illustrations.
From Slate ● Aug. 6, 2026
Afterward, Lori showed Ken and Bob some of her illustrations.
From "The Glass Castle" by Jeannette Walls
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.
