illustrative

adjective

il·​lus·​tra·​tive i-ˈlə-strə-tiv How to pronounce illustrative (audio)
also
ˈi-lə-ˌstrā- How to pronounce illustrative (audio)
: serving, tending, or designed to illustrate
illustrative examples
art that is illustrative of provincial life
illustratively adverb

Examples of illustrative in a Sentence

an illustrative analogy in which the relationship between God and humanity is likened to that between a shepherd and his flock
Recent Examples on the Web And although Sybil Sassoon’s brooding black taffeta opera cloak looks somewhat flat compared to its five-foot illustrative counterpart, the dressed mannequins act as three dimensional portals into Sargent’s world. Leah Dolan, CNN, 1 Mar. 2024 The constant challenge for journalism is to distinguish between the anecdote, which is illustrative, and the datum, which is indicative. Neal B. Freeman, National Review, 7 Feb. 2024 The illustrative material, at a glance, looks unsurprising: a photo of Marcus Garvey by Van Der Zee, a drawing of the Scottsboro Boys by Douglas, a print of a picket line by Roy DeCarava. Holland Cotter, New York Times, 19 Feb. 2024 The dire straits of the European solar industry is an illustrative example: while the EU achieved record solar installations last year, its own solar panel manufacturers risk going out of business as cheap Chinese solar imports flood in. Mary Hui, Quartz, 13 Feb. 2024 An illustrative example of whats possible comes from Climate Company Spiritus, which took it upon itself to voluntarily offset the carbon emissions of Taylor Swift's potential private jet flight from Japan to Las Vegas for the Superbowl. Michael Sheldrick, Forbes, 10 Feb. 2024 Choose from illustrative thumbnails for Portrait, Landscape, Macro, Lifestyle, Filmatic, and more. PCMAG, 5 Feb. 2024 The experiences of projects that received the last tranche of Infrastructure Law charging funding is illustrative. Aarian Marshall matt Simon, WIRED, 11 Jan. 2024 Some illustrative examples in science from the past year include AI models able to categorize genetic mutations as benign or harmful, and breakthroughs that will lead to more inclusive and equitable genetics testing and treatment. James Manyika, Fortune, 16 Jan. 2024

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

Word History

First Known Use

1643, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of illustrative was in 1643

Dictionary Entries Near illustrative

Cite this Entry

“Illustrative.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/illustrative. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

illustrative

adjective
il·​lus·​tra·​tive il-ˈəs-trət-iv How to pronounce illustrative (audio)
: serving or meant to illustrate
illustrative examples

More from Merriam-Webster on illustrative

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