Meaning of illuminate in English:

illuminate

Pronunciation /ɪˈl(j)uːmɪneɪt/

Translate illuminate into Spanish

verb

[with object]

1Make (something) visible or bright by shining light on it; light up.
‘a flash of lightning illuminated the house’
- ‘his face was illuminated by a smile’
- ‘That day, it was the interior's turn to be brilliantly illuminated - by fluorescent lights carried up to the rafters by remote-controlled helium balloons.’
- ‘A great flash of lightning illuminated the world outside, showing the trees dark against the night sky.’
- ‘The next town was Boyes, just 29 km down the road and as we rode towards it we saw flashes of lightning illuminate the horizon.’
- ‘At the top of the last little bump, they could see the shoulder-high summit sign illuminated by the first light of day.’
- ‘Lightning flashed, illuminating the dark hollow face of a single man.’
- ‘Kentis elects not to use artificial lighting, so the only time we see the characters is when a flash of lightning illuminates them and the sharks that are circling them.’
- ‘The lightning flashes illuminated the pastor's face.’
- ‘At the moment, in the third window down, a light shone brightly, illuminating a small patch of the garden below.’
- ‘All movement was eradicated as a brilliant flash of blue-orange light illuminated their horrified faces.’
- ‘A green fluorescent light illuminates a wall work that quotes the iconic graphic equaliser readout in homage to Donald Judd.’
- ‘The heads will face one another topped with a helmet and lamp from which beams of light will illuminate the carriageways.’
- ‘Then a storm begins, and the flashes of lightning briefly and beautifully illuminate a tree waving in the wind outside the window.’
- ‘Overheard the sun shone brightly, illuminating the garden with a brilliant ray of light.’
- ‘A flash of light briefly illuminated the hallway, pouring through the broken window and burning their eyes.’
- ‘When the lights flashed it illuminated the sky and the whole area.’
- ‘Great flashes of light illuminated the whole area, punctuated by the rumbling of thunder clouds.’
- ‘Seems its only presence to the passing motorist is a narrow entrance road and a sign which wasn't illuminated.’
- ‘He said oversized and illuminated signs were not appropriate in the area.’
- ‘A golden light was shining down illuminating Isabelle's face.’
- ‘The sun's morning light shone softly, illuminating her blue eyes.’
light, light up, throw light on, cast light upon, brighten, make brighter, shine on, flood with light, floodlight, irradiate
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1. 1.1Decorate (a building or structure) with lights for a special occasion.
  ‘As the season approaches the countryside and towns light up and outlines of houses buildings and churches are illuminated.’
  ‘It appealed to the citizens of Bangalore to decorate and illuminate their houses and shops, feed the poor and offer prayers for the long life and prosperity of the Maharaja.’
  ‘On Diwali 1619 the Golden Temple was illuminated with many lights to welcome home and celebrate the release of Guru Hargobind from imprisonment in Gwalior fort.’
  ‘During this period, the minarets of all the mosques are illuminated with strings of electric lights.’
  ‘During the Lantern Festival, most temples are illuminated by colorful lanterns of all shapes and sizes.’
2Help to clarify or explain.
‘placing the events of the 1930s in a broader historical context helps to illuminate their significance’
- ‘Their results were paradoxical and their discussion illuminating.’
- ‘There is even the promise of positive theory, exemplified in a brief but illuminating discussion of Likert's notions of effective hierarchies.’
- ‘Of this central Lockean teaching and Zuckert's meticulous and illuminating discussions of it, we hear not one word from Prof. Mitchell.’
- ‘Arf contributed to the education of many of the present day mathematicians in Turkey, not only by his lectures but also through illuminating discussions in conferences and seminars.’
- ‘He does so clearly, often illuminating the topic with discussion of classical texts.’
- ‘Fellow blogger and super-cute Darian had some very funny, illuminating and revealing stories about the film he was currently working on.’
- ‘I would like to thank him for illuminating discussions and for sending a manuscript prior to publication.’
- ‘Like the rescue workers there, one waded in trying to find something that was alive, that would illuminate and explain what had happened.’
- ‘Even here, in the first chapter, the reader is treated to probing analysis and illuminating discussion.’
- ‘Cross-cultural research can help illuminate and clarify the social and developmental differences that exist across various cultures.’
- ‘The discussion is often illuminating: for example, the discussion of the divine king, or of the marginalization of royal women in Benin.’
- ‘Stark's discussion is lively, pointed and frequently illuminating.’
- ‘Though MacDonald's discussion of this topic is interesting and illuminating, it left me unconvinced.’
- ‘The editors emphasize making tacit knowledge itself explicit, rather than illuminating the process of creating and using valuable tacit knowledge.’
- ‘The two books provide detailed but clear legislative history while illuminating the changing political process and values of the postwar West.’
- ‘All of these essays are clear, well documented, and illuminating.’
- ‘Questions were asked about black box, flight paths, crashes, missile technology, etc., and the answers were illuminating.’
- ‘That last incident is particularly illuminating.’
- ‘The commentary is particularly illuminating.’
- ‘The text ends on page 710, the rest consisting of notes and index, and while the notes are sharp and illuminating, some of them amount to mini-essays.’
clarify, elucidate, explain, reveal, make clear, shed light on, cast light on, give insight into, clear up
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3Decorate (a page or letter in a manuscript) by hand with gold, silver, or coloured designs.
‘this is a carefully written, large-format manuscript illuminated by Leonardo Bellini’
- ‘Large illuminated letters became popular with the advent of hand-written manuscripts and official documents.’
- ‘Thus, the museum began to acquire European sculpture and old master drawings and purchased an important collection of medieval and renaissance illuminated manuscripts.’
- ‘He is a fine late Romanesque painter open to more modern influences, particularly those emanating from Byzantium, perhaps via Franciscan illuminated manuscripts.’
- ‘Yet a current show there, on one of the grandest of all illuminated manuscripts, does both.’
- ‘Two different worlds present themselves to the scholar of Hebrew illuminated manuscripts from Spain.’
decorate, illustrate, embellish, adorn, ornament, enhance, emblazon, highlight
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