Making something clear or easier to understand; shedding light on a subject or literally providing light.
From Latin 'illuminare' (to light up), combining 'in-' (in) and 'luminare' (to light, from 'lumen' meaning light). The metaphor of light revealing truth is ancient.
We literally think of understanding as light and confusion as darkness in almost every language—'I see,' 'that's unclear,' 'brilliant idea'—making this metaphor fundamental to human thought.
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