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• revelation
  revelation

  noun

  the act of revealing or disclosing; disclosure.
• Revelation
  Revelation

  noun

  (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

revelation

American  

[rev-uh-ley-shuhn] / ˌrɛv əˈleɪ ʃən /

noun

• revelations
  plural

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.

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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

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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

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

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

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• revelations
  plural

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; see also reveal, -tion; cf. apocalypse ( def. )

Explanation

Discovering that you had a long-lost sister would definitely be a revelation, or a surprising realization. Finding out she had been living in the house next door for years would be an even more startling revelation! It is not a surprise that the word revelation is related to the word reveal, because revealing is the action of showing something that was previously covered up or unknown. You can even use both words in the same sentence: "You might find it a revelation if someone revealed to you that your house was sitting on top of a gold mine!"

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

revelation Revelation revelations

The liturgical norms to be respected "are not constraints but guidelines, rules, fixed points," he said, calling sacred art "an absolutely important message of revelation".

From Barron's ● Aug. 22, 2026

Schlittler has been a revelation this season, posting an American League-best 2.19 ERA to emerge as the Cy Young front-runner.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026

But no revelation is as courageous or groundbreaking as Panettiere’s description of her experience with postpartum depression.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2026

The revelation came as the country grappled with whistleblower Edward Snowden’s leaks exposing the vast reach of the agency’s surveillance.

From Salon ● Aug. 17, 2026

Whatever energy he had left has been stolen from him by this revelation.

From "Dry" by Neal Shusterman and Jarrod Shusterman

Revelation, God’s relation to the human, is an even more intimate shock: not a doctrine delivered, but an address, an encounter in which the “I” discovers itself summoned as a “you.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 6, 2026

Revelation after revelation about Andrew's behaviour has prompted an unusual level of chatter.

From BBC ● Nov. 1, 2025

It's a story of divine rescue, which is what apocalyptic narratives often are, and the Book of Revelation is in particular.

From Salon ● May 26, 2025

At New Revelation Missionary Baptist Church in Pasadena, senior pastor George Hurtt estimates that 80% to 90% of his congregation lives in Altadena.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 16, 2025

We substituted good grammar for intellect; we switched habits to simulate maturity; we rearranged lies and called it truth, seeing in the new pattern of an old idea the Revelation and the Word.

From "The Bluest Eye" by Toni Morrison

The first trial was dramatically annulled last year after two-and-a-half months of hearings, following revelations that one of the judges overseeing it took part in a clandestine documentary about the case.

From Barron's ● Aug. 20, 2026

The following morning, on the train back to London, people could be overheard complimenting the play and discussing its big revelations.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 10, 2026

They argued that no such revelations should be made until the court rules on an objection to the order requiring the disclosure.

From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026

Meanwhile, New Mexico’s legislative “truth commission” released its first report on Zorro Ranch Wednesday, but the 119-page document offers little in the way of new revelations or recommendations.

From Salon ● Aug. 5, 2026

I intuited that such revelations made Augustine a Protestant church father more than a Catholic father.

From "Hunger of Memory" by Richard Rodriguez

Related Words

• announcement
• discovery
• epiphany
• leak
• news