illustrative

[ ih-luhs-truh-tiv, il-uh-strey-tiv ]

adjective

1. serving to illustrate; explanatory:

   illustrative examples.

Other Word Forms

• il·lustra·tive·ly adverb
• nonil·lustra·tive adjective
• nonil·lustra·tive·ly adverb
• over·il·lustra·tive adjective
• over·il·lustra·tive·ly adverb
• self-il·lustra·tive adjective
• unil·lustra·tive adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of illustrative¹

First recorded in 1635–45; illustrate + -ive

Example Sentences

On its social media posts showing people being escorted onto planes, it says these are illustrative and the public will understand that ways of offenders leaving the country will vary considerably.

From BBC

This is only one man's explanation, but it is still very insightful and illustrative of the broader trends that led to Trump's victory and Harris' defeat.

From Salon

In this illustrative example, the global index revealed a trend towards progress being made on social measures at the expense of biophysical measures of resilience.

From Science Daily

Broncos were ranked 24th in 2023's illustrative gradings - 4.38 points short of the top 12 - meaning that an extraordinary finish would have been necessary to even come close to retaining their top-flight place.

From BBC

An earlier version of this story contained an illustrative map of the English Channel containing an iceberg that was slightly over-sized.

From BBC

Related Words

• descriptive
• emblematic
• figurative
• revealing