enlightenment

noun

en·light·en·ment | \ in-ˈlī-tᵊn-mənt

, en-\

Definition of enlightenment

1 : the act or means of enlightening : the state of being enlightened

2 capitalized : a philosophical movement of the 18th century marked by a rejection of traditional social, religious, and political ideas and an emphasis on rationalism —used with the

3 Buddhism : a final blessed state marked by the absence of desire or suffering

Examples of enlightenment in a Sentence

the search for spiritual enlightenment His comments failed to provide enlightenment. the enlightenment of the public through education

Recent Examples on the Web

Since the election of Trump in 2016, the radical impulses of angry ‘wokeness’ have started to metabolize, among some, into a search for inner peace and spiritual enlightenment. — Laird Borrelli-persson, Vogue, "1968 vs. 2018: 50 Years Later Fashion Is Still Playing With the Bohemian Rhapsody of the Late, Tumultuous ’60s," 14 Dec. 2018 The Constitution is best understood as a brilliant blend of traditional and enlightenment thinking, a Madisonian compromise if ever there was one. — WSJ, "What Did the Enlightenment Really Give Us?," 13 Apr. 2018 Science fiction typically portrays aliens either as evil forces looking to conquer Earth or as benevolent beings helping humans along the path to enlightenment. — Samantha Nelson, The Verge, "George R.R. Martin’s Nightflyers asks whether humanity deserves to be saved," 29 Nov. 2018 Light axions looking for enlightenment The version of dark matter that is the focus of this work is a hypothetical subatomic particle known as the axion. — Chris Lee, Ars Technica, "Pulsars could convert dark matter into something we could see," 20 Dec. 2018 For Dewey, everything reduced to a simple question: who is most in need of enlightenment, citizens or administrators? — Sean Illing, Vox, "Intellectuals have said democracy is failing for a century. They were wrong.," 20 Dec. 2018 In fact, in ancient Japan, archers practiced the ritual of Kyudo, which infused the sport with Zen philosophies to achieve enlightenment. — Lauren Valenti, Vogue, "From Trampoline Classes to Jump Roping, 6 Throwback Workouts That Don’t Feel Like Exercise," 20 June 2018 Speaking at an investors conference in New York, the billionaire real estate magnate patted himself on the back for his enlightenment on gender issues. — Jeet Heer, The New Republic, "Sam Zell promotes for merit, not because “we gotta get more pussy on the block.”," 6 June 2018 Buddha, for example, gave up the rich life of a prince for enlightenment. — William Wan, The Seattle Times, "Are rich people more likely to lie, cheat, steal? Science explains the world of Manafort and Gates.," 13 Aug. 2018

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

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More Definitions for enlightenment

enlightenment

noun

English Language Learners Definition of enlightenment

: the state of having knowledge or understanding : the act of giving someone knowledge or understanding

: a movement of the 18th century that stressed the belief that science and logic give people more knowledge and understanding than tradition and religion

Buddhism : a final spiritual state marked by the absence of desire or suffering

See the full definition for enlightenment in the English Language Learners Dictionary

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