Webster's English Dictionary

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explain

ex.plain \ik-'spla-n\ \-'pla--n*-b*l\ vb [ME explanen, fr. L explanare, 
   lit., to make level, fr. ex- +] planus level, flat 1: to make plain or 
   understandable  2: to give the reason for or cause of  3: to show the 
   logical development or relationships of  : to give an explanation NTERPRET 
   mean to make something clear or understandable. EXPLAIN implies a making 
   plain or intelligible what is not immediately obvious or entirely known; 
   EXPOUND implies a careful often elaborate explanation; EXPLICATE adds the 
   idea of a developed or detailed analysis; ELUCIDATE stresses the throwing 
   of light upon as by offering details or motives previously obscure or only 
   implicit; INTERPRET adds to EXPLAIN the use of imagination or sympathy or 
   special knowledge in dealing with something that presents more than logical 
   difficulty - ex.plain.able aj SYN syn EXPLAIN, EXPOUND, EXPLICATE, 
   ELUCIDATE, I