Word
elucidate
Phoneticselu·ci·date
US/ɪˈɫusəˌdeɪt/
UK/ɪlˈuːsɪdˌeɪt/
Definition
v. to make something clear by explaining it in detail.
v. to make a concept or situation clear and understandable through detailed explanation or analysis.
Examples
“The professor will elucidate the main points of the theory.”
“The researcher spent months collecting data to help elucidate the cause of the rare disease.”
“While the initial report was dense with technical jargon, the follow-up document served to elucidate the findings for a broader audience of policymakers and educators.”
Examples
simple
“The professor will elucidate the main points of the theory.”
contextual
“The researcher spent months collecting data to help elucidate the cause of the rare disease.”
complex
“While the initial report was dense with technical jargon, the follow-up document served to elucidate the findings for a broader audience of policymakers and educators.”
Usage
This is a transitive verb that requires a direct object, such as a point, a theory, or a mystery.
Real-World Examples
“In addition to developing the high-performance sensor, the researchers elucidated, for the first time, the mechanism by which it detects ammonia, providing a new direction for the development of next-generation perovskite-based gas sensors.” “Whitty retains many of Shakespeare’s speeches but tweaks certain lines to elucidate meaning.” Etymology
From Late Latin ēlūcidātus, perfect passive participle of ēlūcidō (“to lighten, enlighten”) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)), from ē(x)- (“out, from”) + lūcidus (“bright, clear, understandable”) + -ō (first conjugation verb-forming suffix), literally “to make light of (something)”, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *lewk- (“bright; to see; to shine”). Compare French élucider.
From Late Latin ēlūcidātus (“lightened, enlightened”), see Etymology 1 and -ate (adjective-forming suffix) for more.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.