Meaning & use
explain
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Meanings
verbtransitive
To give information, reasons, or examples so something becomes clear to someone.
Grammar: Takes an object: explain the rule. Say explain something to someone, not explain someone something.
Patterns
- explain something to someone
- explain why/how
- explain that...
Can you explain the rule to me one more time?
The guide explained how the locks on the canal work.
She explained that the delay was caused by fog.
verbtransitive
To give the reason for a decision, action, or result and often defend it.
Grammar: Takes an object or reflexive pronoun: explain yourself. It is more about justification than simple clarity.
Patterns
- explain a decision
- explain yourself
- explain your behaviour
Please explain your absence before Friday.
He could not explain why the files were missing.
If you arrive late, be ready to explain yourself.
Word forms
| third person singular | explains |
|---|---|
| past tense | explained |
| past participle | explained |
| -ing form | explaining |
Common combinations
- explain clearly
- Could you explain clearly what happened next?
- explain the difference
- The chart explains the difference between the plans.
- explain yourself
- After the error, she had to explain herself to the team.
- explain away a problem
- He tried to explain away the missing money as a rounding error.
Synonyms and how they differ
- clarify
- Best when something unclear becomes clear; explain can also supply reasons or defence.
- describe
- Tells what something is like; explain tells why or how it works.
- justify
- Defends an action as right; explaining does not always claim the action was right.
- account for
- Means be the reason for or give reasons for, often with results and numbers.
Opposites
Word family
- explanation noun
- A statement that makes something clear or gives reasons.
- explanatory adjective
- Intended to explain something.
- explainable adjective
- Possible to explain or understand.
Commonly confused: explain or exclaim? explain or explode?
explain vs exclaim
Exclaim means cry out suddenly; explain means make clear.
explain vs explode
Similar start only; explode means burst apart.
Practice
Choose the correct sentence.
Choose one answer.
English uses explain something to someone. The first option follows the pattern of tell me something, but explain cannot take two objects like that; the others are ungrammatical.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “explain”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.