enlighten
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.
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When you get a varied body of work, it can enlighten your own life in a way, and that’s a great feeling.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 17, 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
Then, barely a month of saving later, Mr. Ostrowski saw fit to enlighten me about the truth of my great potential.
From "X: A Novel" by Ilyasah Shabazz
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He thought about the country’s anger, prejudice and the way the news batters more than enlightens.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 18, 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
Patrick Carone, a former editor at Abercrombie’s quarterly magazine, enlightens viewers on the concept of a mall: “Imagine, like, a search engine that you could walk through.”
From New York Times ● Apr. 18, 2022
What it shows us, what it leaves out and which important opportunities it misses are more concerning, all of which are why this hour disappoints more than it enlightens or activate the viewer.
From Salon ● Nov. 21, 2021
“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
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“In their minds, they see themselves as more enlightened and therefore more justified to cut off for more reasons,” Anderson says.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 26, 2026
Every decision it makes about the pace and composition of new issuance, and every decision about whether to retire or not retire existing issues, is a legitimate choice made under enlightened self-interest.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026
When you see a really good player, that’s a rara avis — an enlightened individual.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 4, 2026
He’s on the board of the Museum of Modern Art in New York and received its David Rockefeller Award, given to an “individual from the business community who exemplifies enlightened generosity.”
From Barron's ● Jun. 18, 2026
“So something more compelling than a badger will create a more enlightened student body. Got it.”
From "Here to Stay" by Sara Farizan
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This columnist’s three years in the trenches were the toughest yet most enlightening three years of my career.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 23, 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
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Vocabulary lists containing enlighten
"The Odyssey" by Homer, Books 14–18
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Ronald Reagan, "Tear Down This Wall" (1987)
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The Titan's Curse
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