• Elucidate

    Pronunciation

    • UK IPA: /əˈluː.sɪ.deɪt/

    Origin

    From Late Latin elucidatus, past participle of elucidō ("clarify"), from Latin ex- and lucidus ("clear")

    Full definition of elucidate

    Verb

    1. To make clear; to clarify; to shed light upon.
      • 1817, Jane Austen, Northanger Abbey, ch. 13:The business, however, though not perfectly elucidated by this speech, soon ceased to be a puzzle.
      • 1960, "Medicine: Unmasking the Brain," Time, 4 April:Physicians at the annual meeting of the American Academy of General Practice were fascinated by a 3-ft. model showing the brain's components in 20 layers of translucent plastic, and wired for colored lights to elucidate some of its workings.
      • 2004, David Bernstein, “Philosophy Hitches a Ride With ‘The Sopranos’,” New York Times, 13 April (retrieved 19 Aug. 2009):The new Sopranos volume has 17 essays that examine the television show and elucidate concepts from classical philosophers, including Aristotle, Machiavelli, Nietzsche, Sun Tzu and Plato.

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