enlightening
adjective
-ˈlī-tᵊn-iŋ, en-\
Definition of enlightening
: providing or tending to provide knowledge, understanding, or insight a very enlightening discussion … he takes readers on enlightening excursions through the nature of Judaism, Hegelian philosophy, wherever his curiosity heads.— George Johnson
Keep scrolling for more
Synonyms & Antonyms for enlightening
Synonyms
educational, educative, illuminating, informational, informative, informatory, instructional, instructive
Antonyms
unenlightening, unilluminating, uninformative, uninstructive
Visit the Thesaurus for More
Examples of enlightening in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
His discussion of the racial policies of these schools is especially enlightening. — Naomi Schaefer Riley, WSJ, "‘Fundamentalist U’ Review: Believers in Higher Ed," 6 May 2018 Being older on the road is equal parts disconcerting, humbling and enlightening. — New York Times, "The Frugal Five," 27 June 2018 For a layperson like your faithful correspondent, the taxonomy spanning the back wall of the space was especially enlightening. — Kelsey Keith, Curbed, "Record-setting attendance has us asking some big questions," 27 Apr. 2018 Get Data Sheet, Fortune’s technology newsletter Love for His Mother The former president, at one point, turned his attention to his life and his parents, saying that his book, Dreams from My Father, was an enlightening experience for him. — Don Reisinger, Fortune, "The Best Moments from David Letterman's Interview With Barack Obama on Netflix," 12 Jan. 2018 Thisvideo tour of Larch Wood Enterprises in Nova Scotia is a mesmerizing and enlightening look at the process. — Eric Limer, Popular Mechanics, "The Surprisingly Complex Process of Turning a Tree Into an End-Grain Cutting Board," 11 Aug. 2015 Our mutual hypersensitivities might have yanked us away from enlightening, crucial — and fun — cultural detective work (close reading, unpacking, interpreting) and turned us into beat cops always on patrol, arresting anything that rankles. — Wesley Morris, New York Times, "Who Gets to Decide What Belongs in the ‘Canon’?," 30 May 2018 Instead, the team went to the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C., an obviously more enlightening experience. — Otis R. Taylor Jr., SFChronicle.com, "Oakland journalist sees black culture shifting from music to sports," 25 June 2018 Thanks to our host Brad Rickman, editors Mara Balagtas and Sebastian Modak, and contributor Cassie Shortsleeve for a spirited and enlightening conversation. — Cnt Editors, Condé Nast Traveler, "Why Plastic in Our Oceans Is a Travel Problem, Too: Travelogue Podcast," 8 June 2018These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'enlightening.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Keep scrolling for more
Keep scrolling for more
Comments on enlightening
What made you want to look up enlightening? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).
Test Your Vocabulary
Autumn Words of the Day 2018
-
- Which is a synonym of fugacious?
Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?
TAKE THE QUIZ
Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.
TAKE THE QUIZ
Share enlightening
Resources for enlightening