How to Use enlighten in a Sentence

enlighten

verb
  • I don't understand what's going on; can someone please enlighten me?
  • To sort of enlighten what that means.
    — Charna Flam, People.com, 6 Aug. 2025
  • Can any of your readers enlighten me?
    — Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 27 Jan. 2026
  • And in his mind, these books tended to obscure as much as enlighten.
    — John Cassidy, The New Yorker, 2 Nov. 2024
  • People who go to the movies in vast numbers these days don’t want to be enlightened.
    — D. Harlan Wilson, Slate Magazine, 3 Aug. 2017
  • As to how that would’ve gone down, only Brad can enlighten us there.
    — Brian Davids, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019
  • Bid three clubs, forcing, hoping his next bid will enlighten you.
    — Frank Stewart, The Mercury News, 3 June 2024
  • Call it enlightened self-interest wrapped in black and gold.
    — Mike Bianchi, The Orlando Sentinel, 22 Jan. 2026
  • The goal of all great literature is to teach and to enlighten.
    — NBC News, 26 Oct. 2021
  • The proportion who do now is still small, but the number who are enlightened is not small.
    — Evan Osnos, The New Yorker, 23 Oct. 2023
  • That really opened my eyes and enlightened me.
    — Nicholas Quah, Vulture, 3 Oct. 2025
  • The primary goal is, of course, to enlighten us about the dark universe.
    — Jonathan O'Callaghan, Scientific American, 30 June 2023
  • The artists are usually on hand to enlighten you about their creations.
    — David L. Coddon, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 Sep. 2021
  • There’s something both taboo and enlightening in the twist this sly story takes.
    — BostonGlobe.com, 4 Oct. 2019
  • This is the type of theater that will comfort and enlighten us in our dark days, and lead us back into the light.
    — Christopher Arnott, courant.com, 18 Jan. 2022
  • Giving us all the chance to be inspired and enlightened, but doing it with humor and love.
    — Liz McNeil, PEOPLE, 15 Dec. 2025
  • Her cheery fashion looks are the perfect thing to wear on her mission to enlighten people.
    — Christian Allaire, Vogue, 27 Jan. 2021
  • As theater people, one of our aims is to enlighten and tell the story and open a person’s heart.
    — Gabrielle Sanchez, Vulture, 3 Mar. 2021
  • As theater people, one of our aims is to enlighten and tell the story and open a person’s heart.
    — Gabrielle Sanchez, Vulture, 3 Feb. 2021
  • On the other hand, those who make it are upheld as virtuous and enlightened.
    — Adam Chandler, TIME, 21 Jan. 2025
  • Check the facts from objective researchers, you will be enlightened.
    — Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 24 June 2024
  • Blending the two can lead to decisions that are both informed and enlightened.
    — Anar Mammadov, Forbes, 17 Mar. 2025
  • Enlightened humans, spreading that light one to the other to the other.
    — Megan Mullally, Billboard, 1 June 2017
  • Electors, by contrast, were expected to be enlightened and above the fray.
    — Marianne Levine, Washington Post, 8 Dec. 2023
  • In fact, the rest of the interview, while not enlightening, was cordial.
    — Jeff Schultz, ajc, 7 Apr. 2017
  • Bowl season always tends to enlighten us about players who have slowly emerged over the course of the season.
    — cleveland, 18 Mar. 2021
  • Her voice is one of the many captivating, haunting and enlightening in the film.
    — Rick Kogan, chicagotribune.com, 17 July 2019
  • The center is full of artwork and a museum, which teaches and enlightens.
    — Lisa Deaderick, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 May 2023
  • Not to foreshadow the end of Dellinger, but there was this great message that the enlightened are not welcome here.
    — Abbey White, The Hollywood Reporter, 18 Jan. 2025
  • The goal is to enlighten the newcomer while providing a novel twist that will please the expert.
    — Parul Sehgal, New York Times, 15 May 2018

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'enlighten.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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