ILLUS'TRATE, verb transitive [Latin illustro; in and lustro, to illuminate. See Luster.] 1. To make clear, bright or luminous. 2. To brighten with honor; to make distinguished. Matter to me of glory! whom their hate Illustrates-- 3. To brighten; to make glorious, or to display the glory of; as, to illustrate the perfections of God. 4. To explain or elucidate; to make clear, intelligible or obvious, what is dark or obscure; as, to illustrate a passage of Scripture by comments, or of a profane author by a gloss.
Source: Webster's 1828 American Dictionary ↗ · public-domain · returned verbatim, no AI