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enlightenment

[en-lahyt-n-muhnt] / ɛnˈlaɪt n mənt /


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

While both statesmen were deists who believed in predestination and embraced the rational philosophy of the Enlightenment, they had different conceptions of what enlightened government meant.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 27, 2026

The Scottish Enlightenment philosopher, David Hume, for example, argued that suicide did not transgress a person's duty "to God, our neighbour, or ourselves".

From BBC • Mar. 16, 2026

Wright’s English subjects are, like his contemporary Edward Gibbon’s Romans, backlit by a skepticism whose coherence derives from the Enlightenment confidence in objective reason.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 14, 2026

In fact, Ben Franklin—scientist of the American Enlightenment and one of America’s Founding Fathers—famously argued against adopting the bald eagle as a national symbol for this very reason.

From Slate • Feb. 21, 2026

It had been blessed by priests back home—the Enlighteners, they were called, because their monastery was the Place of Full Enlightenment.

From "Dragonwings" by Laurence Yep




Vocabulary lists containing enlightenment