illustrate
Americanverb (used with object)
-
illustrates,
present (3rd person singular)
-
illustrated,
past participle, past
-
illustrating
present participle
-
to furnish (a book, magazine, etc.) with drawings, pictures, or other artwork intended for explanation, elucidation, or adornment.
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to make clear or intelligible, as by examples or analogies; exemplify.
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Archaic. to enlighten.
verb (used without object)
-
illustrates,
present (3rd person singular)
-
illustrated,
past participle, past
-
illustrating
present participle
verb
-
to clarify or explain by use of examples, analogy, etc
-
(tr) to be an example or demonstration of
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(tr) to explain or decorate (a book, text, etc) with pictures
-
(tr) an archaic word for enlighten
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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illustratornoun
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overillustrateverb (used with object)
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preillustrateverb (used with object)
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reillustrateverb (used with object)
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superillustrateverb (used with object)
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illustratableadjective
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illustrativeadjective
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illustrativelyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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illustratesimple
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illustratessimple
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have illustratedperfect
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has illustratedperfect
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am illustratingprogressive
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are illustratingprogressive
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is illustratingprogressive
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have been illustratingperfect progressive
-
has been illustratingperfect progressive
Past
-
illustratedsimple
-
had illustratedperfect
-
was illustratingprogressive
-
were illustratingprogressive
-
had been illustratingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of illustrate
First recorded in 1520–30; from Latin illustrātus, past participle of illustrāre “to illuminate, make clear, give glory to”; see il- 1, luster 1, -ate 1
Explanation
To illustrate is to make something more clear or visible. Children's books are illustrated with pictures. An example can illustrate an abstract idea. The word illustrate comes from the Latin illustrare 'to light up or enlighten.' Pictures in a book enlighten the reader, and a good example can enlighten someone on a complex topic. Another use: The government's actions illustrate how out of touch it is with the people. The history of this word illustrates how language changes over time, and how knowing the original meaning can help you understand the word in a deeper way.
Vocabulary lists containing illustrate
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The SAT: Language of the Test, List 3
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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:
Those figures represent ticket sales, not profits, but illustrate the potential value of such an arrangement.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 26, 2026
The latest economic numbers amply illustrate the challenge of actually delivering them.
From BBC ● Oct. 21, 2026
Fielder wants to use the sketch to illustrate how Holmes’s description of the effectiveness of the Theranos device was confusing.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 20, 2026
None of this addresses another communication issue that has received widespread attention: whether or how the Fed might generate alternative scenarios to illustrate key risks.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 16, 2026
These examples, at first so bizarre to us, illustrate well the roles of geography and of diffusion in the history of technology.
From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond
That operating margin illustrates that Microsoft is able to retain about half of the revenue that it brings in after accounting for the cost of business operations.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 29, 2026
He writes in there, but it’s a workshop too: he illustrates and he crafts.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 28, 2026
The television ads case illustrates the conundrum of practical immunity.
From Salon ● Oct. 27, 2026
In a Target parking lot in Bossier City, La., I encountered Jeff Cheetham, whose unlikely story illustrates the good and the bad of EVs in America today.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2026
Martin Gardner, the mathematics writer, illustrates the distinction between general and specific occurrences by means of a spinner with the twenty-six letters of the alphabet on it.
From "Innumeracy: Mathematical Illiteracy and Its Consequences" by John Allen Paulos
The lavishly illustrated catalog, with wide-ranging, readable essays by Mr. Dalvit and his team, must be the definitive publication on the subject.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 28, 2026
“The Boys” co-creator Darick Robertson illustrated the grinning gargoyle on its label.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 27, 2026
Ramos illustrated the distinction with an analogy involving a leaking roof.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 23, 2026
This crucial difference is reflected in market-timer sentiment, as is illustrated in the second chart, below.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 20, 2026
His eldest daughter, Miranda, no longer wrote him the happy illustrated letters she’d regularly sent his way throughout her earlier girlhood.
From "The Milagro Beanfield War" by John Nichols
Their eventual collision could help produce an even more massive black hole, illustrating a process that may have been essential to the growth of the universe's earliest cosmic giants.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 25, 2026
It means that China has the leading two players in the rankings for the first time, further illustrating the country's position as a snooker superpower.
From BBC ● Oct. 4, 2026
The rotation into long-dated Treasury ETFs is more than five standard deviations away from its historical average, illustrating just how extreme this shift is relative to normal activity.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 1, 2026
Instinct is rapidly amassing investment dollars, illustrating the rush of excitement around personal AI assistants.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 29, 2026
Lori was working as a freelance artist specializing in fantasy, illustrating calendars and game boards and book jackets.
From "The Glass Castle" by Jeannette Walls
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