illumination

noun

il·​lu·​mi·​na·​tion i-ˌlü-mə-ˈnā-shən 

1

: the action of illuminating or state of being illuminated: such as

a

: spiritual or intellectual enlightenment

b(1)

: a lighting up

(2)

: decorative lighting or lighting effects

c

: decoration by the art of illuminating

2

: the luminous flux per unit area on an intercepting surface at any given point

3

: one of the decorative features used in the art of illuminating or in decorative lighting

Synonyms

• clarification
• construction
• elucidation
• exegesis
• explanation
• explication
• exposition
• illustration
• interpretation
• road map

Examples of illumination in a Sentence

When taking photographs indoors, use a flash for illumination.

They traveled to the temple in search of spiritual illumination.

an old manuscript with beautiful illuminations

Recent Examples on the Web

The piece is eccentrically perforated so that illumination from an LED inside produces eerie patterns. —Mark Jenkins, Washington Post, 5 Apr. 2024

Automatic in-camera corrections take care of barrel distortion and a vignette, so JPGs and video captures show properly straight lines and decently even illumination across the frame. —PCMAG, 31 Mar. 2024

Friday saw a waxing gibbous moon at 99% illumination. —Jenna Prestininzi, Detroit Free Press, 24 Feb. 2024

The new moon, the phase in which Earth sees no illumination, appears each month as part of the regular lunar cycle. —Martin Weil, Washington Post, 30 Mar. 2024

Much to-do was made at the Broad’s debut over the football-size expanse of column-free space on the third floor, where the permanent collection is shown, with lovely natural illumination diffused from a vast skylight. —Christopher Knight, Los Angeles Times, 27 Mar. 2024

This month's full moon, nicknamed the Worm Moon, rises on March 25 (six days after the Spring Equinox) and reaches peak illumination at 3:00 a.m. ET. —Skyler Caruso, Peoplemag, 16 Mar. 2024

Dazzling illumination and overwhelming orchestral effect, not color, made this heart-stopping. —Mark Swed, Los Angeles Times, 6 Mar. 2024

March 25: Full Moon Worm Close the month with the full worm moon, which hits peak illumination early the morning of March 25. —Stephanie Vermillion, Travel + Leisure, 1 Mar. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

illumination

noun

il·​lu·​mi·​na·​tion il-ˌü-mə-ˈnā-shən 

1

a

: the action of illuminating or state of being illuminated

b

: amount of light

2

: gold or colored decoration in a manuscript

Medical Definition

illumination

noun

il·​lu·​mi·​na·​tion il-ˌü-mə-ˈnā-shən 

1

: the action of supplying or brightening with light or the resulting state

2

: the luminous flux per unit area on an intercepting surface at any given point

called also illuminance

illuminate

il-ˈü-mə-ˌnāt 

transitive verb

illuminated; illuminating