Illuminate — meaning, pronunciation & more

Definition

make lighter or brighter

make free from confusion or ambiguity; make clear

Pronunciation

🇺🇸American English

/ɪlˈuːmᵻnˌeɪt/

🇬🇧British English

/ɪlˈuːmɪnˌeɪt/

🇮🇳Indian English

/ɪlˈuːmɪnˌeɪt/

4 syllables Say it as /ɪlˈuːmᵻnˌeɪt/.

Examples

This lamp lightens the room a bit
Could you clarify these remarks?
Clear up the question of who is at fault

Synonyms & Antonyms

Synonyms

enlighten light up illume illumine clear up crystallise sort out clear light straighten out elucidate shed light on crystalise crystalize crystallize

Parts of Speech

verb	make lighter or brighter “This lamp lightens the room a bit”
verb	make free from confusion or ambiguity; make clear “Could you clarify these remarks?”
verb	add embellishments and paintings to (medieval manuscripts)

Word Forms

light	noun	having abundant light or illumination
illumination	noun	the degree of visibility of your environment
illuminant	noun	something that can serve as a source of light
elucidative	adjective	that makes clear
lucidity	noun	a lucid state of mind; not confused
elucidation	noun	an act of explaining that serves to clear up and cast light on

Around the World

Europe

🇩🇪German

beleuchten

heller oder heller machen

🇫🇷French

éclairer

rendre plus clair ou plus brillant

🇪🇸Spanish

iluminar

hacer más claro o más brillante

🇮🇹Italian

illuminare

rendere più chiaro o più luminoso

🇳🇱Dutch

verlichten

lichter of helderder maken

🇵🇹Portuguese

iluminar

tornar mais claro ou mais brilhante

🇷🇺Russian

освещать

сделать светлее или ярче

India

🇮🇳Hindi

रोशन

हल्का या उज्जवल बनाना

🇧🇩Bengali

আলোকিত করা

হালকা বা উজ্জ্বল করুন

🇮🇳Tamil

வெளிச்சம்

இலகுவாக அல்லது பிரகாசமாக ஆக்கு

🇮🇳Telugu

ప్రకాశించు

తేలికగా లేదా ప్రకాశవంతంగా చేయండి

🇮🇳Marathi

प्रकाशित करणे

फिकट किंवा उजळ करा

🇮🇳Gujarati

પ્રકાશિત

હળવા અથવા તેજસ્વી બનાવો

🇮🇳Kannada

ಪ್ರಕಾಶಿಸುತ್ತವೆ

ಹಗುರವಾಗಿ ಅಥವಾ ಪ್ರಕಾಶಮಾನವಾಗಿ ಮಾಡಿ

🇮🇳Malayalam

പ്രകാശിപ്പിക്കുക

ഭാരം കുറഞ്ഞതോ തെളിച്ചമുള്ളതോ ആക്കുക

🇮🇳Punjabi

ਰੋਸ਼ਨੀ

ਹਲਕਾ ਜਾਂ ਚਮਕਦਾਰ ਬਣਾਓ

🇵🇰Urdu

روشن کرنا

ہلکا یا روشن بنائیں

East & Southeast Asia

🇨🇳Chinese

照亮

使更亮或更亮

🇯🇵Japanese

照らす

軽くしたり明るくしたりする

🇰🇷Korean

비추다

더 밝게 또는 더 밝게 만들다

🇻🇳Vietnamese

chiếu sáng

làm nhẹ hơn hoặc sáng hơn

🇹🇭Thai

ส่องสว่าง

ทำให้สว่างขึ้นหรือสว่างขึ้น

🇮🇩Indonesian

menerangi

membuat lebih terang atau terang

🇵🇭Filipino

lumiwanag

gawing mas magaan o mas maliwanag

🇲🇾Malay

menerangi

menjadikan lebih ringan atau lebih terang

Middle East

🇸🇦Arabic

تضيء

جعل أخف وزنا أو أكثر إشراقا

🇮🇷Persian

روشن کردن

سبک تر یا روشن تر کنید

🇹🇷Turkish

aydınlatmak

daha açık veya daha parlak yap

🇮🇱Hebrew

לְהַאִיר

לעשות קל יותר או בהיר יותר

Test Yourself1 / 3

What is the primary definition of the word 'illuminate'?

The primary meaning of 'illuminate' is 'make lighter or brighter'.

Which of the following sentences uses the word 'illuminate' in a grammatically correct way?

Using 'illuminate' in a noun/adjective form makes the first sentence correct.

In which domain is the word 'illuminate' most likely to appear as standard vocabulary?

'illuminate' is a standard word used primarily in general literature and formal communications.

Community Poll1 / 6

How often do you encounter the word 'illuminate' in your daily reading?

Very Often

Occasionally

Rarely

Never

Do you find 'illuminate' easy to spell?

Yes, very easy

Somewhat easy

A bit confusing

Extremely hard

In your opinion, does the word 'illuminate' have a positive, neutral, or gloomy tone?

Positive

Neutral

Gloomy

Vibrant

Which age group is most likely to use 'illuminate' in regular conversations?

Kids (3-12)

Teens (13-19)

Adults (20-60)

Seniors (60+)

How likely are you to use 'illuminate' in a professional email?

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Never

Would you classify 'illuminate' as formal, casual, or slang?

Formal

Casual

Slang

Archaic

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