revelation

American  

[rev-uh-ley-shuhn] / ˌrɛv əˈleɪ ʃən /

noun

1. the act of revealing or disclosing; disclosure.

   The revelation of previously hidden facts about the group’s activities changed the situation completely.

   Synonyms:

   exposure, divulgence, admission

2. something revealed or disclosed, especially a striking disclosure, such as of something not before realized.

   Her memoir contained several fascinating revelations about her love life.

3. Theology.

   1. God's disclosure of Himself and His will to His creatures.

   2. an instance of such communication or disclosure.

   3. something thus communicated or disclosed.

   4. something that contains such disclosure, as the Bible.

4. Also called The Revelation of St. John the Divine.  Revelation. the last book in the New Testament; the Apocalypse. Rev.

---

revelation ¹ British  

/ ˌrɛvəˈleɪʃən /

noun

1. the act or process of disclosing something previously secret or obscure, esp something true

2. a fact disclosed or revealed, esp in a dramatic or surprising way

3. Christianity

   1. God's disclosure of his own nature and his purpose for mankind, esp through the words of human intermediaries

   2. something in which such a divine disclosure is contained, such as the Bible

---

Revelation ² British  

/ ˌrɛvəˈleɪʃən /

noun

1. Also called: the Apocalypse.   the Revelation of Saint John the Divine.  (popularly, often plural) the last book of the New Testament, containing visionary descriptions of heaven, of conflicts between good and evil, and of the end of the world

---

Other Word Forms

• nonrevelation noun
• prerevelation noun
• revelational adjective
• unrevelational adjective

Etymology

Origin of revelation

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English revelacion, revelacioun, from Anglo-French revelaciun, revelacioun, revelatiun, from Middle French revelacion, revelation, from Late Latin revēlātiōn- (stem of revēlātiō ), equivalent to Latin revēlā(tus) , past participle of revēlāre “to remove the cover from, unveil, lift the lid of, uncover” + -tiōn- verbal noun suffix dentoting the action of the verb; reveal, -tion; apocalypse ( def. )

Example Sentences

But the files themselves appear to contain no explosive revelations.

From BBC

That revelation—plus a decline in tech stocks and ongoing worries about how Oracle would finance its AI expansion—has sent shares spiraling.

From Barron's

“I really regret that,” she adds, referring to her acceptance speech revelation.

From Los Angeles Times

Why not have a public inquiry into all of the recent revelations?

From BBC

The revelations — unveiled in a criminal complaint and attached affidavit Wednesday charging the alleged arsonist, Jonathan Rinderknecht — raise questions about what the Los Angeles Fire Department could have done to prevent the conflagration.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• announcement
• discovery
• epiphany
• leak
• news