1
as in diagrams
something that visually explains or decorates a text
this book on birds has gorgeous illustrations
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2
as in explanations
a statement that makes something clear
forced to give several illustrations until she was understood
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3
as in pictures
a two-dimensional design intended to look like a person or thing
the doctor sketched an illustration to explain the procedure to the patient
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4
as in examples
one of a group or collection that shows what the whole is like
chose one essay as an illustration of the high quality of the collection
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Recent Examples of illustrations
From room to room walls are covered in blue block prints or hot-pink illustrations of pear trees, while floors are scattered with artisanal rugs and a collection of curios—a rooster statue, a floral dress form—is hidden all over.
—
Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 2 June 2026
The thieves also took five illustrations by Brazilian modernist Cândido Portinari created for a special edition of José Lins do Rego’s novel Menino de Engenho.
—Daniel Cassady, ARTnews.com, 1 June 2026
The illustrations of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool’s plumbing system were drawn from National Park Service documents produced as part of its renovations and reviewed by people with knowledge of the project.
—New York Times, 31 May 2026
The project Bilha, Stories of My Sisters, which blends photographic portraits with digital illustrations, has been selected from the 10 Professional competition category winners as the overall Photographer of the Year 2026 at the prestigious Sony World Photography Awards.
—Cecilia Rodriguez, Forbes.com, 31 May 2026
Paired with his illustrations, Macauley’s book details the creation of a 16th century Turkish mosque, along with its societal functions and significance.
—Carly Tagen-Dye, PEOPLE, 28 May 2026
The book was co-written by her daughter, Emma Walton Hamilton, and featured illustrations from Andrews' ex-husband Tony Walton.
—Anthony Robledo, USA Today, 26 May 2026
In the end, those are just measurements and illustrations that approximate the thing itself.
—Wyatt Williams, Harpers Magazine, 26 May 2026
For this anniversary edition, the design team at Smythson looked at the Beatrix Potter archive for illustrations, sketches and prints, translating them into key pieces include Panama notebooks in blue, green and chalk, gold-stamped with character motifs.
—Tianwei Zhang, Footwear News, 19 May 2026
Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 2 June 2026
The thieves also took five illustrations by Brazilian modernist Cândido Portinari created for a special edition of José Lins do Rego’s novel Menino de Engenho.
—Daniel Cassady, ARTnews.com, 1 June 2026
The illustrations of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool’s plumbing system were drawn from National Park Service documents produced as part of its renovations and reviewed by people with knowledge of the project.
—New York Times, 31 May 2026
The project Bilha, Stories of My Sisters, which blends photographic portraits with digital illustrations, has been selected from the 10 Professional competition category winners as the overall Photographer of the Year 2026 at the prestigious Sony World Photography Awards.
—Cecilia Rodriguez, Forbes.com, 31 May 2026
Paired with his illustrations, Macauley’s book details the creation of a 16th century Turkish mosque, along with its societal functions and significance.
—Carly Tagen-Dye, PEOPLE, 28 May 2026
The book was co-written by her daughter, Emma Walton Hamilton, and featured illustrations from Andrews' ex-husband Tony Walton.
—Anthony Robledo, USA Today, 26 May 2026
In the end, those are just measurements and illustrations that approximate the thing itself.
—Wyatt Williams, Harpers Magazine, 26 May 2026
For this anniversary edition, the design team at Smythson looked at the Beatrix Potter archive for illustrations, sketches and prints, translating them into key pieces include Panama notebooks in blue, green and chalk, gold-stamped with character motifs.
—Tianwei Zhang, Footwear News, 19 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for illustrations
Noun
-
There’s no point postulating a soul that might rise beyond the reach of artificial illumination, because the very vault of the Universe is inscribed with radiant diagrams.—
Wyatt Williams,
Harpers Magazine,
2 June 2026
-
Documentation, diagrams and dashboards have served as approximations of reality, and teams have relied on a combination of knowledge and experience to fill in the gaps.—
Matthew Sweeney,
Forbes.com,
1 June 2026
Noun
-
Use clear headings, concise explanations and logical formatting.—
Jeremy Fields,
Forbes.com,
1 June 2026
-
All 48 national team coaches were involved in a workshop to detail the law changes — which for the World Cup also includes a three-minute cooling break 22 minutes into each half — and every player will receive the same explanations before the tournament starts on June 11.—
Jordan Campbell,
New York Times,
31 May 2026
Noun
-
On a recent day, a stream of visitors, including school children, walked through the circular room, stopping to sit behind the desk and pose for pictures.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
4 June 2026
-
On a recent day, a stream of visitors, including schoolchildren, walked through the circular room, stopping to sit behind the desk and pose for pictures.—
Sophia Tareen,
Los Angeles Times,
4 June 2026
Noun
-
Randy Colman, president and CEO of Goodman Jewish Family Services, thanked the survivors for being living examples of perseverance and strength.—
Lauren Costantino,
Miami Herald,
3 June 2026
-
These examples are among the more tame messages — many are laced with profanity and references to violence.—
Maven Navarro
June 3,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
3 June 2026
Noun
-
Photonics can be used in AI infrastructure by using light to move data between graphics processing units (GPUs), memory, networking chips, servers and data centers, instead of relying on electrical signals running along copper.—
Kai Nicol-Schwarz,
CNBC,
29 May 2026
-
Nvidia hasn’t made any recent moves in laptop graphics, and the new Helios will feature silicon at the top of the consumer-GPU food chain, in the form of GeForce RTX 50-series chips up to the mighty 24GB GeForce RTX 5090.—
John Burek,
PC Magazine,
29 May 2026
Noun
-
And what do the fates of these men say about how and through whom the show defines audacity — a word that has two different interpretations and uses?—
Abbey White,
HollywoodReporter,
2 June 2026
-
While the show's other actors don't know the truth, many of them have shared their interpretations since the finale aired.—
Brendan Morrow,
USA Today,
2 June 2026
Noun
-
For all the prior cinematic depictions of storming bunkers and camaraderie under fire, Pressure offers us the quiet heroism of rational restraint in the figure of James Stagg, who weathered his inner storms and bore the courage to be disliked.—
Daniel Jonah Wolpert,
NPR,
29 May 2026
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In this way, the film offers one of the most unique and realistic depictions of a famous historical battle ever put to screen.—
Jordan Hoffman,
Entertainment Weekly,
29 May 2026
Noun
-
His broad network of advisers includes many prominent figures, including former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, investor Stanley Druckenmiller, and Chevron CEO Mike Wirth, all of whom appeared at his swearing-in last month at the White House.—
Matt Peterson,
CNBC,
3 June 2026
-
Altogether, Russia fired 656 drones and 73 missiles at Ukraine overnight, according to Ukrainian Air Force figures, which said the vast bulk of the drones and just over half of the missiles were shot down.—
Helen Regan,
CNN Money,
2 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Illustrations.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/illustrations. Accessed 5 Jun. 2026.
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