illuminate

1 to supply with light <a floor lamp illuminates a living room rather nicely> Synonyms bathe, beacon, emblaze, illume, illumine, irradiate, light, lighten Related Words brighten; beam, beat (down), radiate, shine; enhalo, halo; floodlight; highlight, spotlight; blaze, burn, fire, flame, glare, glow, ignite, incinerate, kindle; bedazzle, blind, daze, dazzle; gleam, glisten, glitter Near Antonyms dim, dull, obscure; cover, shroud, veil; douse (also dowse), extinguish, put out, quench, snuff (out) Antonyms blacken, darken, obfuscate

2 to make plain or understandable <the museum's exhibit on the refraction of light really illuminated the subject for us> Synonyms clarify, clear (up), construe, demonstrate, demystify, elucidate, explicate, expound, get across, explain, illustrate, interpret, simplify, spell out, unriddleRelated Words decipher, decode; analyze, break down; disentangle, undo, unravel, unscramble, untangle; resolve, solve; define, specify; annotate, commentate, glossNear Antonyms befog, cloud; confound, confuse, obfuscateAntonyms obscure

3 to supplement with pictorial matter for the purpose of explanation or decoration <no one knows for sure the identity of the artist who illuminated that medieval manuscript so beautifully> Synonyms illustrate, pictorializeRelated Words image, picture, visualize

4 to indicate the importance of by centering attention on <that city's total unpreparedness for the powerful hurricane illuminated the need for all cities to have plans in place before disaster strikes> Synonyms accent, accentuate, feature, foreground, highlight, emphasize, play up, point (up), press, punctuate, stressRelated Words focus, identify, pinpoint, spotlight; advertise, boost, plug, promote, publicize; overplayNear Antonyms tone (down), underemphasize, understate; belittle, discount, disparage, minimizeAntonyms de-emphasize, play down

5 to provide (someone) with moral or spiritual understanding <how man is illuminated by a higher spirit> Synonyms edify, educate, illume, enlighten, illumine, inspire, nurtureRelated Words elevate, ennoble, enrich, ensoul, lift, uplift; better, improve, regenerate, renew, transform; exalt, glorify, transfigureNear Antonyms confuse, perplex, puzzle; becloud, cloud, darken, obscure