explanatorily

C2+ Topic:Describing Qualities

US /ɪkˈsplænəˌtɔrɪli/ UK /ɪkˈsplænət(ə)rɪli/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

adv
in a way that serves to explain or clarify

He raised a hand explanatorily before the audience could object.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 adv · in a way that serves to... clarifyinglyillustrativelyelucidatively

Word family

Related forms explanatory explain explanation

Etymology

From explanatory + -ly. Explanatory comes from Latin explanare ('to make plain'), from ex- ('out') + planus ('flat, plain').

explanare Latin planus Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Describing Qualities Word Formation & Derivatives

External links

# explanatorily

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** adv
**IPA (US):** /ɪkˈsplænəˌtɔrɪli/
**IPA (UK):** /ɪkˈsplænət(ə)rɪli/

## Meanings
1. in a way that serves to explain or clarify

## Examples
- He raised a hand explanatorily before the audience could object.

## Synonyms
- clarifyingly
- illustratively
- elucidatively

## Related Forms
- explanatory
- explain
- explanation

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: explanare
- Root: planus

## Etymology
From explanatory + -ly. Explanatory comes from Latin explanare ('to make plain'), from ex- ('out') + planus ('flat, plain').

## AI Etymology
Explanatorily comes from explanatory + -ly. Explanatory comes from Latin explanare ('to make plain'), from ex- ('out') + planus ('flat, plain'). Morphologically, the account is both compositional and suffixal: ex- and -ly marks the visible structure by which the older base becomes the modern form. In present use, it is used as an adverb meaning "in a way that serves to explain or clarify", so the historical material remains connected with the current sense rather than standing as bare ancestry. The wider English family includes related forms such as explanatory, explain, and explanation, showing how the same historical material continues to organize neighboring vocabulary. The named historical forms include Latin explanare and Latin planus, keeping the history tied to concrete forms rather than a loose resemblance. Its semantic neighborhood includes clarifyingly, illustratively, and elucidatively, locating the modern specialization without adding a new origin story.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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