Thesaurus.com
Dictionary.com
Showing results for enlighten. Search instead for datenschichten.
Definitions

enlighten

[en-lahyt-n] / ɛnˈlaɪt n /


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:

Its narrative offers few character sketches, jumps around in time and digresses into subjects that distract more than they enlighten.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 3, 2026

So can you enlighten us as to the great wisdom Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito share in their own concurrences?

From Slate ● Jun. 18, 2025

“The truth is, you are either here to enlighten or discourage.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 7, 2025

Because I break bread with and claim to be part of this marked construct, this otherness, complete with jail time within the carceral state, allow me to enlighten you.

From Salon ● Jan. 1, 2024

“What am I doing here, Strange? Are you going to enlighten me?”

From "Strange the Dreamer" by Laini Taylor

There's not a lot of focus on music that enlightens people, and that carries over to other products as well.

From Salon ● Jun. 17, 2023

This is her place to retreat inward with her sheep to create prose that enlightens us and products that feed us.

From Seattle Times ● Jun. 16, 2023

This is why “Catch the Fair One” ultimately disappoints more than it enlightens.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 11, 2022

But it thrives as an autonomous sphere, and as I age, it’s increasingly the one that succors, enlarges, and enlightens me most, when I have the energy and presence to bring to it.

From Slate ● Dec. 20, 2019

“You are like he was,” Keith enlightens me, “and just like him, you were most likely to die the same way—a quarter of what you could have been....”

From "I Am the Messenger" by Markus Zusak

Or should the seemingly enlightened Norwegians be more understanding?

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2026

Phenomenal amounts of self-righteous bloviating about enlightened or benighted child-feeding have gone on for centuries.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026

When you see a really good player, that’s a rara avis — an enlightened individual.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 4, 2026

Historically, hoping that an absolute power will benevolently provide for humanity if sufficiently enlightened hasn’t led to safe or positive outcomes.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026

What I had read in the tennis magazines simply confounded rather than enlightened me.

From "Kaffir Boy: An Autobiography" by Mark Mathabane

His post-meeting press conference also was enlightening, even without “forward guidance” about Fed intentions.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026

Nevertheless, it’s an enlightening read in light of how dramatically war has changed in the last two-and-a-half centuries.

From Salon ● Jul. 4, 2026

"Together, these records offer a more complex and enlightening account of the Revolution, showing how its consequences were felt far beyond the Thirteen Colonies," Cunningham added.

From Barron's ● Jun. 22, 2026

Alexander said: "It was the single most enlightening conversation I've had in the last month on trade so I see why you hold him in such high regard."

From BBC ● Jun. 3, 2026

Similarly, whenever I used to think a conversation I’d had with someone was especially funny or enlightening, I would jot it down in my notebook, the same one I kept my book titles in.

From "Where Things Come Back" by John Corey Whaley


Vocabulary lists containing enlighten

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

Get a word

Vocabulary.com logo
by dictionary.com

Just like flashcards, but way more fun

Don't take our word for it. Leave the boring studying behind and join VocabTrainer today. You'll learn even faster and never look back.

Take me to Vocabulary.com