elucidate
Usage
What are other ways to say elucidate?
To elucidate is to throw light on what before was dark and obscure, usually by illustration and commentary and sometimes by elaborate explanation: They asked him to elucidate his statement. To explain is to make plain, clear, or intelligible something that is not known or understood: to explain a theory or a problem. To expound is to give a methodical, detailed, scholarly explanation of something, usually Scriptures, doctrines, or philosophy: to expound the doctrine of free will. To interpret is to give the meaning of something by paraphrase, by translation, or by an explanation based on personal opinion: to interpret a poem or a symbol.
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.
"There are many questions that we will only elucidate when we are able to go back," Grossi told reporters.
From BBC • Mar. 31, 2026
On the West Coast, he found more “openness” and an “anything goes” ethos that saw the struggling artist move further into music as a means to elucidate and explore creativity.
From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 23, 2025
While remote data can reveal elusive aspects of life during conflict, personal interviews and surveys can elucidate long-term — even transgenerational — impacts of war.
From Salon • Oct. 19, 2024
But despite 20 years of intensive research, scientists have been unable to fully elucidate what actually happens during the synthesis of COFs.
From Science Daily • Jun. 18, 2024
Gene replication must explain how a multicellular organism emerges from a single cell—and errors in replication might elucidate how a spontaneous metabolic illness, or a devastating mental disease, might arise in a previously unaffected family.
From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee
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From Roget's 21st Century Thesaurus, Third Edition Copyright © 2013 by the Philip Lief Group.