Translation
to expound, to set out in full (formal)
Word origin
From Latin explicare, to unfold: ex- ('out') plus plicare ('to fold'). A Roman scroll was unrolled to be read, so explaining something and unfolding it were once the same physical act. The same plicare is inside complicated, which is folded together.
- Origin
- Latin
- Root
- explicare
- English cognates
- explicate, explicit, complicated
Examples
.
The professor expounded the rule step by step.
.
That book sets out the whole system.
, .
Please explain what you mean.
Use instead, nearly always. sits at rank 410, is built out of (clear) plus -- (to make), and is what a speaker says when they want something explained. is the learned Latin import sitting beside it, and the difference is register rather than meaning: is to make clear, is to expound. A teacher the homework; a commentator a text.
That register gap is where the word earns its place. Reach for when you are laying out a doctrine, a theory or a legal point at length, in writing, for a reader who expects that tone - and reach for in every other sentence you will ever write. Using in conversation is not wrong; it is the Esperanto equivalent of saying elucidate in a pub.
Related forms. Ekspliko is an exposition, eksplika explanatory. Do not confuse it with , to explode - two letters apart, and a genuinely easy slip in fast typing.
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ekspliki: worksheet, infographic and listicle
Free printable study downloads for the Esperanto word "ekspliki" (to expound, to set out in full (formal)): a worksheet with the answer key built in, an infographic, and a sentence listicle. Open any one to view, print or save.
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Start your free weekThis word is part of lesson 47.