enlightened

adjective en·light·ened \ in-ˈlī-tᵊnd , en- \

1 : freed from ignorance and misinformation

an enlightened people

an enlightened time

2 : based on full comprehension of the problems involved

issued an enlightened ruling

See enlightened defined for English-language learners

Examples of enlightened in a Sentence

an enlightened approach to prison reform

Recent Examples of enlightened from the Web

Reinstalled in 2016 after undergoing conservation, the sculpture portrays the bodhisattva of compassion, an enlightened being known as Avalokitesvara in India, where Buddhism originated, and in China as Guanyin.

— lee lawrence, WSJ, "An Exalted Personage Made Wholly Accessible," 8 Sep. 2017
Not long ago social media held out the promise of a more enlightened politics, as accurate information and effortless communication helped good people drive out corruption, bigotry and lies.

— The Economist, "Do social media threaten democracy?," 4 Nov. 2017
But black Americans are also knowingly weary and embittered by the absence of such enlightened thinking when those in our own families were similarly wounded.

— eugene scott, Washington Post, "The opioid crisis isn’t limited to white Americans in rural pro-Trump counties," 26 Oct. 2017
To describe the scene is to rob it of its visceral power, but suffice to say that its concern is how humans move in packs — and how even (or especially) the most enlightened act with cowardice.

— steven zeitchik, latimes.com, "Swedish provocateur Ruben Östlund looks at selfless, and selfish, behavior in Cannes prizewinner 'The Square'," 23 Oct. 2017
The audience isn’t divided into cavemen who watch movies for the sole purpose of objectifying hot people and the more enlightened among us, who know to privilege other aspects of the cinema.

— willa paskin, Slate Magazine, "In Defense of Lusty Movie Reviews," 8 June 2017
The ad premiered on ESPN, another brand whose less-than-enlightened actions have plenty of people unhappy with at the moment.

— allison p. davis, The Cut, "Bozoma Saint John Is a Better Brand Than Uber.," 31 Oct. 2017
Chief executives from the world's most enlightened companies came together to discuss everything from education to inclusion to the environment.

— alex scimecca, Fortune, "Why Jamie Dimon, Indra Nooyi, and Arianna Huffington Were in 1 Room This Week," 26 Sep. 2017
But these were not simply the good-neighbor actions of an enlightened franchise.

— peter king, SI.com, "Trump Calls on NFL Owners to Fire Players Who Protest, and Mocks Efforts to Make the Game Safer," 23 Sep. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'enlightened.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.