explain
Usage
What are other ways to say explain?
To explain is to make plain, clear, or intelligible something that is not known or understood: to explain a theory or a problem. 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 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 is also a mysterious space between bodies, the client and myself, where something happens that I cannot really explain, but it feels magical,” she says.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 22, 2026
The growth of the upper middle class since the 1970s helps explain why the prices of some things, such as housing, have increased far beyond inflation.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 21, 2026
The company didn’t explain its updated outlook in the earnings release.
From Barron's • Apr. 21, 2026
The findings also help explain why therapies aimed at blocking glutamine do not always succeed.
From Science Daily • Apr. 20, 2026
Wolf wriggled and snapped until Torak manage to explain that he had to stay with Renn, who settled the matter by producing a handful of dried lingonberries from her food pouch.
From "Wolf Brother" by Michelle Paver
Vocabulary lists containing explain
PARCC: Language of the Test (Grade7)
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Jim Burke's Academic Vocabulary List
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The SAT: Language of the Test, List 4
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