1
as in to clarify
to make plain or understandable
a pamphlet that explains the medical procedure in language that any layperson can understand
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to justify
to give the reason for or cause of
can you explain your very odd behavior at the wedding reception?
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of explain
Gilroy also explains Cassian's nod to the Force Healer.
Poor, poor, poor Dedra.
—
Dalton Ross, EW.com, 14 May 2025
Trump further explained his stance during an interview with Fox News’ Sean Hannity, which aired on Tuesday night.
—Callum Sutherland, Time, 14 May 2025
About The Daily Money Each weekday, The Daily Money delivers the best consumer and financial news from USA TODAY, breaking down complex events, providing the TLDR version, and explaining how everything from Fed rate changes to bankruptcies impacts you.
—Daniel De Visé, USA Today, 14 May 2025
Plus, writer-director Paul Feig explains how true-crime podcasts inspired the film's murderous methods.
—Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 2 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for explain
Dalton Ross, EW.com, 14 May 2025
Trump further explained his stance during an interview with Fox News’ Sean Hannity, which aired on Tuesday night.
—Callum Sutherland, Time, 14 May 2025
About The Daily Money Each weekday, The Daily Money delivers the best consumer and financial news from USA TODAY, breaking down complex events, providing the TLDR version, and explaining how everything from Fed rate changes to bankruptcies impacts you.
—Daniel De Visé, USA Today, 14 May 2025
Plus, writer-director Paul Feig explains how true-crime podcasts inspired the film's murderous methods.
—Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 2 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for explain
Recent Examples of Synonyms for explain
Verb
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Immigrant advocates have called on the Supreme Court to clarify how much notice migrants should receive before removal under the act and to review the legality of Trump's use of the law.—
Billal Rahman,
MSNBC Newsweek,
14 May 2025
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Pay attention to the intent and emotion behind what you're being told, and ask clarifying questions to ensure understanding.—
Caroline Castrillon,
Forbes.com,
14 May 2025
Verb
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This tactic is sometimes used to justify letting an employee go under the guise of poor performance.—
Sho Dewan,
Forbes.com,
24 May 2025
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By confusing the idea that the people’s will must prevail with what the law actually says, these leaders justify intimidating judges and their sound legal rulings, a move that ultimately undermines democracy.—
Michael Gregory,
The Conversation,
23 May 2025
Verb
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Els took a South African passport from his jacket pocket to illustrate his pride in his country.—
Joey Garrison,
USA Today,
22 May 2025
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The capacity to misdirect, in Biden’s case, or mislead, as happened under Trump, illustrates one of the magical features of the White House: the ability of a president to conceal himself in plain sight.—
Mark Z. Barabak,
Los Angeles Times,
21 May 2025
Verb
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Given this reality, Israelis’ attribution of collective responsibility for the Oct. 7 attack creates a troubling moral calculus that rationalizes civilian suffering.—
Carlo Koos,
The Conversation,
22 May 2025
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Rather than condemning such actions, the previous Biden administration report rationalized them.—
Scott Suckow,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
13 May 2025
Verb
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But hundreds of thousands of Israelis demonstrate against the war each week, demanding the government agrees a ceasefire deal to release all the hostages still held in the strip.—
Ivana Kottasová,
CNN Money,
24 May 2025
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In November 2024, Russia demonstrated the capabilities of its own hypersonic missile with an attack on the Ukrainian city of Dnipro, going on television shortly afterwards to boast about the weapons capabilities.—
Peter Aitken,
MSNBC Newsweek,
24 May 2025
Verb
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This streamlined process simplifies revenue streams and eliminates costly chargebacks, providing merchants greater financial predictability and security.—
William Jones,
USA Today,
22 May 2025
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If passed, the revisions would eliminate many of the repayment options introduced under the Biden administration and simplify the process into two choices, both of which would result in higher payments for most borrowers.—
Suzanne Blake,
MSNBC Newsweek,
21 May 2025
Verb
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The emergence of multimodal LLMs, which can interpret speech, images, video and text, is opening up a new class of cross-functional, intelligent workflows.—
Umair Javed,
Forbes.com,
21 May 2025
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According to Lust, judges interpret the law differently.—
Hailey Salvian,
New York Times,
20 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Explain.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/explain. Accessed 28 May. 2025.
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