revelatory

[ ri-vel-uh-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee, rev-uh-luh- ]

adjective

1. of, relating to, or having the characteristics of revelation.
2. showing or disclosing an emotion, belief, quality, or the like (usually followed by of ):

   a poem revelatory of the author's deep, personal sorrow.

Word History and Origins

Origin of revelatory¹

1880–85; < Latin revēlāt ( us ) ( revelation ) + -ory ¹

Example Sentences

Even with the restriction of having to play or sing to the midi track, it still felt revelatory.

From MIT Technology Review

While not as revelatory as Pollan’s major works, this is a wonderful and compelling read that will leave you thinking long after you set it down.

From Washington Post

Few families are covered as exhaustively as the House of Windsor, but this trio of mononyms delivered a truly revelatory, once-in-a-generation interview whose repercussions we’ll likely feel for years to come.

From Washington Post

Not even fans of the Kardashians will find anything interesting or revelatory in this finale.

From The Daily Beast

Behind their revelatory content, these fragments are a testament to Lincoln’s nimble mind.

From Time

The first, while entertaining, is the less revelatory of the two.

From The Daily Beast

When I read the story I thought it was revelatory and completely the opposite of what I thought the script to be.

From The Daily Beast

We went through his rap sheet in an attempt to find the line between revelatory civil disobedience and complete nonsense.

From The Daily Beast

I wanted the reader to care about what happened next, to worry and hope, and I wanted the suspense to feel revelatory, rewarding.

From The Daily Beast

The “favorite moments” section was cute, if not all that revelatory.

From The Daily Beast

In mounting excitement, he read the coldly beautiful, the terrible and revelatory poem through to the end.

From Project Gutenberg

Only if the people are of the simplest and most self-revelatory kind.

From Project Gutenberg

A similar difference exists between the august Truth of tragedy and the less revelatory truthfulness of melodrama.

From Project Gutenberg

Divers revelatory incidents were arranged to eventuate on the limited train.

From Project Gutenberg

These are full of variety and of actual novelty, now of startling discord, now of revelatory beauty.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• articulate
• artistic
• colorful
• dramatic
• eloquent
• energetic
• passionate
• poignant
• striking
• suggestive
• thoughtful
• vivid