vt to make clear, bright, or luminous.
2. illustrate ·adj illustrated; distinguished; illustrious.
3. illustrate ·vt to set in a clear light; to exhibit distinctly or conspicuously.
4. illustrate ·vt to give renown or honor to; to make illustrious; to glorify.
5. illustrate ·vt to adorn with pictures, as a book or a subject; to elucidate with pictures, as a history or a romance.
6. illustrate ·vt to make clear, intelligible, or apprehensible; to elucidate, explain, or exemplify, as by means of figures, comparisons, and examples.