the act of revealing or disclosing; disclosure.
The revelation of previously hidden facts about the group’s activities changed the situation completely.
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.
Theology.
God's disclosure of Himself and His will to His creatures.
an instance of such communication or disclosure.
something thus communicated or disclosed.
something that contains such disclosure, as the Bible.
Also called The Revelation of St. John the Divine. Revelation. the last book in the New Testament; the Apocalypse. Rev.
the act or process of disclosing something previously secret or obscure, esp something true
a fact disclosed or revealed, esp in a dramatic or surprising way
Christianity
God's disclosure of his own nature and his purpose for mankind, esp through the words of human intermediaries
something in which such a divine disclosure is contained, such as the Bible
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. )
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!"
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The logo-shooting, circus-passing, shape-shifting revelation who was once arguably the most famous basketball player in the world has become rude, entitled and, frankly, not all that fun.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 7, 2026
Stories that rest on personal anecdotes always leave space for doubt, which could make the Times piece more of a Rorschach test for one’s existing politics than an election-shifting revelation.
From Slate • Jun. 5, 2026
These days, the prevailing style of curmudgeonry is either nakedly bigoted or, like this one, an extended straw-man argument recast as a bold, brand-new revelation: Heterosexuality is good?
From Salon • Jun. 3, 2026
The revelation does not mean its shares will sell for the proposed price, as it will ultimately be decided by buyers.
From BBC • Jun. 3, 2026
Otto fought a chill, braced for potentially horrifying revelation.
From "The Last Last-Day-of-Summer" by Lamar Giles
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.
