EXPLAINING Synonyms: 50 Similar and Opposite Words

explaining

verb

present participle of explain

as in clarifying

to make plain or understandable a pamphlet that explains the medical procedure in language that any layperson can understand

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in justifying

to give the reason for or cause of can you explain your very odd behavior at the wedding reception?

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

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.

Recent Examples of explaining Wickline came on as an increasingly flustered Anthropic CEO, Dario Amodei, who’s explaining why AI is dangerous without taking any responsibility for that. — Rima Parikh, Vulture, 27 Sep. 2026 But the stakes on Saturday had arguably never been higher for USC’s coach, who spent all offseason explaining how this season would be different. — Ryan Kartje, Los Angeles Times, 27 Sep. 2026 Soon, Distelburger found his Resy account had been suspended without warning, along with an email explaining that the behavior violated Resy’s terms of service. — James Peckham, PC Magazine, 26 Sep. 2026 This moves analytics beyond explaining what happened and toward generating actionable insights that can shape the next major trial before more capital is committed. — George Achilleos, Forbes.com, 25 Sep. 2026 Population metrics aside, there’s a German word that goes a long way toward explaining why so many people seem to enjoy watching the Cowboys every fall—especially when Dallas is on the wrong end of a loss. — Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 25 Sep. 2026 They trade glances across the table and crack jokes that don’t always need explaining; the years together have apparently given them their own shorthand and inside humor. — Crystal Bell, Rolling Stone, 25 Sep. 2026 Here, Theron grew particularly impassioned, explaining that people try to oversimplify the situation. — Angelique Jackson, Variety, 21 Sep. 2026 This question matters, particularly when a chatbot moves from explaining a religious teaching to offering spiritual advice. — Morgan Shipley, The Conversation, 21 Sep. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for explaining

Verb

However, Homestead police released a statement Thursday afternoon clarifying that the driver remained at the scene and was not at fault.

— Peter D'Oench, CBS News, 17 Sep. 2026
The dismissal comes just months after the Connecticut legislature voted to pass legislation clarifying its repeal of the religious exemption — a move that drew heated criticism from Republicans.

— Katy Golvala, Hartford Courant, 16 Sep. 2026

Definition of clarifying

Verb

Benjamin Netanyahu’s far-right government in Israel is using ancient archaeological heritage as a tool for justifying the seizure of Palestinian land in the West Bank, reports the Financial Times.

— Devorah Lauter, ARTnews.com, 24 Sep. 2026
Trump had not previously cited national security in justifying the ban.

— Dan Mangan, CNBC, 21 Sep. 2026

Definition of justifying

Verb

These behaviors were rarely seen in the absence of cocaine, illustrating how a normally varied set of actions can become restricted to a persistent behavioral pattern, according to a press release.

— Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 28 Sep. 2026
By May 2026, the company was making almost $28 in revenue per short-distance passenger, compared with $73 per long-distance passenger, illustrating the tension between the two services.

— Joshua Ceballos, Miami Herald, 25 Sep. 2026

Definition of illustrating

Verb

This year, North America salty snacks sales grew 23%, nearly four times faster than the company overall, demonstrating the early impact in scaling a broader snacking portfolio.

— Kirk Tanner, Fortune, 26 Sep. 2026
SpaceX conducted 170 launches in 2025 — compared to China’s 92 launches — demonstrating the scale of Washington’s commercial edge.

— Mark Montgomery, The Orlando Sentinel, 25 Sep. 2026

Definition of demonstrating

Verb

While captive whales often live only into their 30s, Marino said attributing their deaths to age fails to acknowledge the reality of why their lifespans are shorter.

— Lila Hempel-Edgers, Chicago Tribune, 25 Sep. 2026
The late Pope Francis approved the beatification, attributing to Sheen the resuscitation of an infant born in 2010 without a pulse and revived only after lengthy efforts by medical workers.

— ABC News, ABC News, 24 Sep. 2026

Definition of attributing

Verb

True operating leverage comes from reducing friction, simplifying workflows, improving the ability to make decisions and using technology to amplify scarce human capability.

— Sumit Srivastava, Forbes.com, 24 Sep. 2026
The City of Annapolis is considering changes to its zoning map as part of a multi-year initiative aimed at simplifying the city's zoning system, but some residents in the Historic District are pushing back.

— Caroline Foreback, CBS News, 17 Sep. 2026

Definition of simplifying

Verb

The new study adds another potential health concern, but the researchers themselves caution against interpreting the results as proof of causation.

— Bojan Stojkovski, Interesting Engineering, 21 Sep. 2026
The online methodology is important when interpreting the results because the sample was drawn from Venezuelan internet users rather than through face-to-face or telephone interviews of the broader adult population.

— Antonio María Delgado, Miami Herald, 21 Sep. 2026