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enlightening

 - 3 dictionary results

en⋅light⋅en

[en-lahyt-n]
–verb (used with object)
1. to give intellectual or spiritual light to; instruct; impart knowledge to: We hope the results of our research will enlighten our colleagues.
2. Archaic. to shed light upon.

Origin:
1350–1400; ME enli(g)htenen. See en- 1 , lighten 1


en⋅light⋅ened⋅ly, adverb
en⋅light⋅ened⋅ness, noun
en⋅light⋅en⋅er, noun
en⋅light⋅en⋅ing⋅ly, adverb


1. illumine, edify, teach, inform.


1. mystify, confuse, perplex, puzzle.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To enlightening
en·light·en   (ěn-līt'n)   
tr.v.   en·light·ened, en·light·en·ing, en·light·ens
  1. To give spiritual or intellectual insight to: "Enlighten the people generally, and tyranny and oppression of body and mind will vanish like evil spirits at the dawn of day" (Thomas Jefferson).

  2. To give information to; inform or instruct.

en·light'en·er n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

enlighten 
1382 (O.E. had inlihtan), "to remove the dimness or blindness (usually figurative) from one's eyes or heart," from en- + lighten. Enlightenment is 1669 in the spiritual sense; 1865 as a translation of Ger. Aufklärung, a name for the spirit and system of Continental philosophers in the 18c.
"The philosophy of the Enlightenment insisted on man's essential autonomy: man is responsible to himself, to his own rational interests, to his self-development, and, by an inescapable extension, to the welfare of his fellow man. For the philosophes, man was not a sinner, at least not by nature; human nature -- and this argument was subversive, in fact revolutionary, in their day -- is by origin good, or at least neutral. Despite the undeniable power of man's antisocial passions, therefore, the individual may hope for improvement through his own efforts -- through education, participation in politics, activity in behalf of reform, but not through prayer." [Peter Gay]
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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