elaborate (on)

1
as in to exaggerate
to add to the interest of by including made-up details my friend tends to elaborate on his hiking experiences, turning an ordinary walk in the woods into a hair-raising adventure

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2
as in to develop
to express more fully and in greater detail the candidate for governor refused to elaborate on how she would balance the state's budget

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Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for elaborate (on)
Verb
  • Giménez was exaggerating, but not by much.
    Jon Lee Anderson, New Yorker, 29 Sep. 2025
  • Our foul, flatulent father-figure may exaggerate a bit when belittling his enemies (and friends, for that matter), but cloaked under his aura of filth — like an adult Pig-Pen’s toxic dust cloud — rests a core truth.
    Ben Travers, IndieWire, 24 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Clusters of thunderstorms can develop over the ocean when water temperatures exceed 80 degrees.
    Mike Snider, USA Today, 27 Sep. 2025
  • The result is a thinner middle market, not because of a lack of quality companies, but because the supporting financial structures are still developing.
    Aman Ghei, Fortune, 27 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • This direction—padding the ensemble with social-media-friendly faces—represents more of a nudge toward the future than a massive overhaul.
    David Sims, The Atlantic, 1 Oct. 2025
  • The adjustable straps are lightly padded, and the entire device only weighs 11 pounds with an empty bag.
    Sian Babish, PEOPLE, 28 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • The Educational Freedom Accounts program significantly expand state taxpayer funding of student tuition and other costs related to private schools and some home-school expenses.
    Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 2 Oct. 2025
  • This is a sister organization to the Heritage Foundation, the think tank behind Project 2025—a sweeping conservative policy blueprint aimed at reshaping the federal government by expanding presidential power, dismantling parts of the civil service, and rolling back regulations across agencies.
    Martha McHardy, MSNBC Newsweek, 1 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • These services are typically underfunded by the government, even without a shutdown, and tribal nations have to supplement the services with their own revenues, largely from gaming.
    Frank Vaisvilas, jsonline.com, 3 Oct. 2025
  • After that, both new and current WIC beneficiaries will start to see their benefits impacted, especially those in areas without state funds to supplement the loss of federal dollars, Hard said.
    Tesfaye Negussie, ABC News, 2 Oct. 2025
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Cite this Entry

“Elaborate (on).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/elaborate%20%28on%29. Accessed 3 Oct. 2025.

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