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explain meaning

EN[ɪkˈspleɪn] [ɛkˈspleɪn] [-eɪn]
US

    Definition of explain in English Dictionary

  • VerbSGexplainsPRexplainingPT, PPexplainedSUF-ain
    1. To make plain, manifest, or intelligible; to clear of obscurity; to illustrate the meaning of.
      1. To explain a chapter of the Bible. ‎
    2. To give a valid excuse for some past behavior.
      1. It is tempting to speculate about the incentives or compulsions that might explain why anyone would take to the skies in [the] basket [of a balloon]: perhaps out of a desire to escape the gravity of this world or to get a preview of the next; […].
    3. (obsolete) To make flat, smooth out.
      1. (obsolete) To unfold or make visible.
      2. More Examples
        1. Used in the Middle of Sentence
          • That same model can be invoked to explain how Isotta and Christine reconciled Eve's purported ignorance and weak-mindedness with their own clear intellectual resolve and considerable learning.
          • Consequently, such a glomerulotubular cross-talk theory via TNFα pathway activation and proinflammatory reaction may be a clue to explain our findings.
          • I decided to leave a soft redirect explaining why the website had been moved.
        2. Used in the Ending of Sentence
          • "See, I gots bad hair, the kind of hair you have to wet in the morning 'fore you can comb it," he explains.
      • Part-of-Speech Hierarchy
        1. Verbs
          • Reporting verbs
        Related Links:
        1. en explained
        2. en explaint
        3. en explains
        4. en explain'd
        5. en explainer
        Source: Wiktionary

        Meaning of explain for the defined word.

        Grammatically, this word "explain" is a verb, more specifically, a reporting verb.
        Difficultness: Level 1
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        Easy     ➨     Difficult
        Definiteness: Level 8
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        Definite    ➨     Versatile