verb

clarify

/ˈklærɪfaɪ/ · say it: KLAR·uh·fy

to make more understandable

In Debate & Persuasion

In more detail

1. (verb) to make something clearer or easier to understand by explaining it better

2. (verb) to make something pure or remove unwanted substances from it

Examples

1. Could you clarify what you mean by that statement?
2. The water is filtered to clarify it before it's used.

How to use clarify

Clarify is commonly used in both sense 1 (explaining for understanding) and sense 2 (removing impurities), though sense 1 is far more frequent in everyday English. In professional and academic contexts, it often means to restate or expand on something already mentioned to make it unambiguous. The tone is neutral to formal.

Common phrases

clarify the situation
clarify one's position
clarify a point
clarify the rules
clarify the matter

Synonyms

explain · elucidate · illuminate · simplify · purify

Opposites

obscure · complicate · muddy

Word family

clarity · clarification · clarifying · clarified

A common mistake

Learners sometimes use 'clarify' when they mean 'to clarify to someone' without specifying the recipient, though this is grammatically acceptable; the confusion typically arises when conflating 'clarify' with 'clarify for' or 'explain to'.

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