illuminate

1 to supply with light a floor lamp illuminates a living room rather nicely Synonyms bathe, beacon, emblaze, illume, illumine, irradiate, light, lighten Related Words brighten; beam, beat (down), radiate, shine; enhalo, halo; floodlight; highlight, spotlight; blaze, burn, fire, flame, glare, glow, ignite, incinerate, kindle; bedazzle, blind, daze, dazzle; gleam, glisten, glitter Near Antonyms dim, dull, obscure; cover, shroud, veil; douse (also dowse), extinguish, put out, quench, snuff (out) Antonyms blacken, darken, obfuscate

2 to make plain or understandable the museum's exhibit on the refraction of light really illuminated the subject for us Synonyms clarify, clear (up), construe, demonstrate, demystify, elucidate, explicate, expound, get across, explain, illustrate, interpret, simplify, spell out, unriddleRelated Words decipher, decode; analyze, break down; disentangle, undo, unravel, unscramble, untangle; resolve, solve; define, specify; annotate, commentate, glossNear Antonyms befog, cloud; confound, confuse, obfuscateAntonyms obscure

3 to supplement with pictorial matter for the purpose of explanation or decoration no one knows for sure the identity of the artist who illuminated that medieval manuscript so beautifully Synonyms illustrate, pictorializeRelated Words image, picture, visualize

4 to indicate the importance of by centering attention on that city's total unpreparedness for the powerful hurricane illuminated the need for all cities to have plans in place before disaster strikes Synonyms accent, accentuate, feature, foreground, highlight, emphasize, play up, point (up), press, punctuate, stressRelated Words focus, identify, pinpoint, spotlight; advertise, boost, plug, promote, publicize; overplayNear Antonyms tone (down), underemphasize, understate; belittle, discount, disparage, minimizeAntonyms de-emphasize, play down

5 to provide (someone) with moral or spiritual understanding how man is illuminated by a higher spirit Synonyms edify, educate, illume, enlighten, illumine, inspire, nurtureRelated Words elevate, ennoble, enrich, ensoul, lift, uplift; better, improve, regenerate, renew, transform; exalt, glorify, transfigureNear Antonyms confuse, perplex, puzzle; becloud, cloud, darken, obscure