Thesaurus.com
Dictionary.com
Showing results for enlighten. Search instead for einweichten.
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:

Some of those eagerly sought to enlighten their charges, while a few others grew to see – or claimed to see – an unbridgeable chasm between the ivory tower and mass cultural aspiration.

From Salon ● Apr. 19, 2026

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

"I think in the spirit of the bikers, Dave would want me to continue to have fun and to educate, to inform, to enlighten, to be slightly edgy," he says.

From BBC ● Dec. 6, 2024

“Okay then, enlighten me as to what this marriage business is all about,” says Dad.

From "Saints and Misfits" by S.K. Ali

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

Must-see TV: When They See Us, Ava DuVernay’s miniseries about the lives at the heart of the Central Park Five, informs and enlightens audiences—but as Willa Paskin reviews, entertainment is not its core purpose.

From Slate ● May 30, 2019

When she volunteers to attend what she thinks will be a placid demonstration against coal mining, another member enlightens her: “We don’t really do protests. … We do direct action.”

From New York Times ● May 16, 2019

I will read further, searching until I find an explanation that enlightens me.

From "Ophelia" by Lisa Klein

We have come to believe that it is “more respectful, more enlightened, to let the sick slip through the cracks than to require them to accept treatment,” he writes.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 2, 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

When the delegates had met up in Alkonost, they had assumed they would be enlightened as to the reason for their journey.

From "Strange the Dreamer" by Laini Taylor

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

But the Glass year is already officially underway with two curiously enlightening projects this month.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 21, 2026

"Intelligence is essentially a banal trade of sifting through huge amounts of random information in a search for a single enlightening gem or illuminating link," he wrote.

From "Spies: The Secret Showdown Between America and Russia" by Marc Favreau


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