EXPLAIN

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does explain mean? 

• EXPLAIN (verb)
  The verb EXPLAIN has 3 senses:

1. make plain and comprehensible

2. define

3. serve as a reason or cause or justification of

  Familiarity information: EXPLAIN used as a verb is uncommon.

 Dictionary entry details 

• EXPLAIN (verb)

Present simple: I / you / we / they explain    ... he / she / it explains   
Past simple: explained   
Past participle: explained   
-ing form: explaining   

Sense 1

Meaning:

Make plain and comprehensible

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

Synonyms:

explain; explicate

Context example:

He explained the laws of physics to his students

Hypernyms (to "explain" is one way to...):

inform (impart knowledge of some fact, state of affairs, or event to)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "explain"):

interpret; rede (give an interpretation or explanation to)

account for (give reasons for)

naturalize (explain with reference to nature)

clarify; clear up; elucidate (make clear and (more) comprehensible)

comment (explain or interpret something)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s somebody
Something ----s something
Somebody ----s that CLAUSE

Sentence example:

Sam and Sue explain the movie

Derivation:

explanation (the act of explaining; making something plain or intelligible)

explanatory (serving or intended to explain or make clear)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Define

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

Context example:

The committee explained their plan for fund-raising to the Dean

Hypernyms (to "explain" is one way to...):

say; state; tell (express in words)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s that CLAUSE

Sentence example:

They explain that there was a traffic accident

Derivation:

explanation (a statement that makes something comprehensible by describing the relevant structure or operation or circumstances etc.)

explanatory (serving or intended to explain or make clear)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Serve as a reason or cause or justification of

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

Synonyms:

excuse; explain

Context example:

Her recent divorce may explain her reluctance to date again

Hypernyms (to "explain" is one way to...):

justify; vindicate (show to be right by providing justification or proof)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "explain"):

alibi (exonerate by means of an alibi)

Sentence frame:

Something ----s something

Derivation:

explanation (the act of explaining; making something plain or intelligible)

 Context examples 

If you need to sign papers, do so March 11, and I will explain why in a minute.

(AstrologyZone.com, by Susan Miller)

A gaping throat explained the manner of his death.

(White Fang, by Jack London)

I told him no, and explained how it was that I had read it, and all those other books of which I have made mention.

(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)

I'm interested in other people's experiences and inconsistencies, and though I can't explain, I remember and use them for my own benefit.

(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)

"She could not help it, for she is melted," explained the Scarecrow.

(The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, by L. Frank Baum)

He went alone, at his own request, for he explained that any unnecessary footmarks might make his task more difficult.

(The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

I described the ship to him in the best terms I could, and explained, by the help of my handkerchief displayed, how it was driven forward by the wind.

(Gulliver's Travels into several remote nations of the world, by Jonathan Swift)

“I am afraid that I rather give myself away when I explain,” said he.

(The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

We need to monitor humans and animal health as one single issue, because monkeys are part of the yellow fever cycle in the wild, she explained.

(Aedes mosquitoes almost impossible to eradicate, says Brazilian researcher, Agência Brasil)

"Curupuri is the spirit of the woods," Lord John explained.

(The Lost World, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)