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Elucidate vs Enlighten - What's the difference?

elucidate | enlighten |

As verbs the difference between elucidate and enlighten

is that elucidate is to make clear; to clarify; to shed light upon while enlighten is to supply with light; to illuminate; as, the sun enlightens the earth.

elucidate

English

Verb

(elucidat)
  • To make clear; to clarify; to shed light upon.
  • * 1817 , , Northanger Abbey , ch. 13:
  • The business, however, though not perfectly elucidated by this speech, soon ceased to be a puzzle.
  • * 1960 , " Medicine: Unmasking the Brain," Time , 4 April:
  • [P]hysicians at the annual meeting of the American Academy of General Practice were fascinated by a 3-ft. model showing the brain's components in 20 layers of translucent plastic, and wired for colored lights to elucidate some of its workings.
  • * 2004 , David Bernstein, “ Philosophy Hitches a Ride With ‘The Sopranos’,” New York Times , 13 April (retrieved 19 Aug. 2009):
  • The new Sopranos volume has 17 essays that examine the television show and elucidate concepts from classical philosophers, including Aristotle, Machiavelli, Nietzsche, Sun Tzu and Plato.

    Synonyms

    * explicate, illuminate

    Derived terms

    * elucidation * elucidative * elucidator * elucidatory

    enlighten

    English

    Verb

    (en verb)
  • To supply with light; to illuminate; as, the sun enlightens the earth.
  • To make clear to the intellect or conscience; to shed the light of truth and knowledge upon; to furnish with increase of knowledge; to instruct; as, to enlighten the mind or understanding.
  • Antonyms

    * endarken