explain

verb

ik-ˈsplān How to pronounce explain (audio)
Definition of explainnext
1
as in to clarify
to make plain or understandable a pamphlet that explains the medical procedure in language that any layperson can understand

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to justify
to give the reason for or cause of can you explain your very odd behavior at the wedding reception?

Synonyms & Similar Words

Synonym Chooser

How does the verb explain contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of explain are elucidate, explicate, expound, and interpret. While all these words mean "to make something clear or understandable," explain implies a making plain or intelligible what is not immediately obvious or entirely known.

explain the rules

In what contexts can elucidate take the place of explain?

While in some cases nearly identical to explain, elucidate stresses the throwing of light upon as by offering details or motives previously unclear or only implicit.

elucidate an obscure passage

When is it sensible to use explicate instead of explain?

The words explicate and explain can be used in similar contexts, but explicate adds the idea of a developed or detailed analysis.

explicate a poem

When is expound a more appropriate choice than explain?

Although the words expound and explain have much in common, expound implies a careful often elaborate explanation.

expounding a scientific theory

How are the words interpret and explain related?

Interpret adds to explain the need for imagination or sympathy or special knowledge in dealing with something.

interpreting a work of art

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of explain Among the moments resurrected for the movie was a monologue in which Hansen explained his pitch for the show to a fan on an airplane. — Aaron Couch, HollywoodReporter, 12 Oct. 2026 Bystram said, explaining how the team decides which airplane incidents to investigate. — Sudarsan Raghavan, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026 Consumer spending resilience may be better explained by generations than by income differences, said economist Ed Yardeni, president and chief investment strategist of Yardeni Research. — Sharon Epperson, CNBC, 12 Oct. 2026 Burnette also explained why Kodiak is targeting this type of work. — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 12 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for explain
Recent Examples of Synonyms for explain
  1. clarify
  2. justify
  3. illustrate
  4. rationalize
  5. demonstrate
  6. simplify
  7. interpret
Verb
  • Mayer also clarified that a new single is definitely coming this year.
    — Gil Kaufman, Billboard, 16 Oct. 2026
  • The court wants the parties to clarify the impact of DeWine’s executive order on the case.
    — Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of clarify
Verb
  • The targeting of civilian infrastructure in Saudi Arabia, particularly airports, illustrates the retaliatory logic the Houthis have invoked to justify their actions.
    — Laurent Bonnefoy, The Conversation, 14 Oct. 2026
  • There is always a new spectacle, a new gimmick to lure people into a theater and justify the cost of a ticket.
    — Sam Fleischner, IndieWire, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of justify
Verb
  • Its flight heritage illustrates the importance of dependable computing hardware in missions where repairs are difficult or impossible.
    — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 15 Oct. 2026
  • The incident illustrates the failures of trust and safety provisions that are supposed to protect against this kind of confusion.
    — Mia Sato, The Verge, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of illustrate
Verb
  • But acting on behalf of Iran, a non-Arab Persian country composed almost entirely of Twelver Shia Muslims, was considerably more difficult to rationalize in Arab Yemen where Twelver Shia Muslims are absent and Sunnis are the majority.
    — Laurent Bonnefoy, The Conversation, 14 Oct. 2026
  • Ahmed doesn’t merely document the decisions that led President Biden and his aides to arm and rationalize what leading human rights organizations and legal scholars now consider a genocide.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 24 Sep. 2026
Definition of rationalize
Verb
  • The improvement demonstrates how low-noise lasers and high-quality optical resonators can increase rotation sensitivity on a photonic chip.
    — Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 15 Oct. 2026
  • Their accounts demonstrate how AI is blurring the line between what's real and what's fake in the already fraught arena of online dating.
    — Mary Cunningham, CBS News, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of demonstrate
Verb
  • The architecture is intended to improve maintenance efficiency, reduce dependence on a single vendor, and simplify future performance upgrades.
    — Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 16 Oct. 2026
  • Over the past few years, the fintech company has been consolidating and simplifying its processes and using AI in the business since early 2024.
    — Sheryl Estrada, Fortune, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of simplify
Verb
  • Here, the feature is designed to acquire and interpret the substance of a conversation — and the user has deliberately opted in.
    — MacKenzie Sigalos,Annie Palmer, CNBC, 18 Oct. 2026
  • Part of its purpose, from the beginning, was not only to deliver new facts but to interpret ragged events for a nervous audience of relatively prosperous, largely white viewers who shared Wallace’s concern about the shape and tenor of the future.
    — Vinson Cunningham, New Yorker, 18 Oct. 2026
Definition of interpret

Phrases Containing explain

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expiry
explain
explainable
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Cite this Entry

“Explain.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/explain. Accessed 19 Oct. 2026.

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