explainer

noun

ex·​plain·​er ik-ˈsplā-nər 

plural explainers

: a person or thing that explains something: such as

a

: a person who makes something understandable

Modern day presidents must be good explainers of a complex world …

—Jonathan Alter et al.

b

: an article, podcast, graphic, etc., that explains something complex or not widely understood : an in-depth treatment of a topic

Each half-hour episode contained a big explainer of a complicated issue. The list of topics sounds like the arcane scraps from the cutting-room floor of most newsrooms—the amount of hidden sugar in food, civil forfeiture, the false hopes of lotteries, the failure of the American government to safeguard people who served as interpreters in Iraq and Afghanistan.

—David Carr

Inside, the issue contains a long explainer piece on how the subprime mess came to be and how it wreaked havoc on Citi, Wall Street and especially Merrill.

—Yvette Kantrow

Examples of explainer in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

David Nield is a freelance contributor at Popular Science, producing how to guides and explainers for the DIY section on everything from improving your smartphone photos to boosting the security of your laptop. —David Nield, Popular Science, 4 Apr. 2024

Almost anyone with a digital camera, a solar lens filter and the patience to read explainers online can get a decent photo of it. —Elissaveta M. Brandon, Smithsonian Magazine, 4 Apr. 2024

And to help listeners, the CD’s booklet of lyrics comes with footnotes, linking to news articles, infographics and other explainers. —Sacramento Bee, 31 Jan. 2024

Here's an explainer for travelers departing from U.K. airports over the upcoming holiday season. —Alex Ledsom, Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024

Huberman, a neurobiology professor at Stanford, rose to prominence several years ago by making science explainer videos and appearing as a guest on shows like The Joe Rogan Experience and Lex Fridman Podcast. —Ariel Shapiro, The Verge, 27 Mar. 2024

There are a handful of video explainers trying to warn people about the scam. —Matt Novak / Gizmodo, Quartz, 27 Mar. 2024

When outlets, such as the UK's The Independent, began publishing explainers about Hanbury—likely as a traffic strategy to jump on the internet's rising interest around her—some Kate watchers took the theory a step further. —Kathleen Walsh, Glamour, 14 Mar. 2024

Additional reporting to this story by Sarah Bradley Sarah Bradley has been writing health content since 2017—everything from product roundups and illness FAQs to nutrition explainers and the dish on diet trends. —Amari Pollard, Verywell Health, 12 Mar. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1579, in the meaning defined above