I. ə̇lab(ə)rə̇t, ēˈ-, usu -rə̇d.+V adjective
Etymology: Latin elaboratus
1. archaic : produced by labor
2.
a. : planned or carried out with great care and exactness : worked out in detail : complex
the elaborate register of the inhabitants prevented tax evasion — John Buchan
he began an elaborate calculation on his fingers — Dorothy Sayers
b. : marked by complexity, fullness of detail, or ornateness : intricate , complicated
elaborate wood decorations, mansard roofs, and long porches — Fred Zimmer
c. : painstaking , diligent
an elaborate collector of etchings
• elab·o·rate·ly adverb
• elab·o·rate·ness noun -es
II. -bəˌrāt, usu -ād.+V verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Latin elaboratus, past participle of elaborare to work out, labor diligently, acquire by labor, from e- + laborare to labor — more at labor
transitive verb
1. : to produce by labor : fashion with care
2. of a living organism : to alter the chemical makeup of (as a foodstuff) to one more suited to bodily needs (as of assimilation or excretion) ; especially : to build up (complex organic compounds) from simple ingredients
some neoplasms elaborate abnormal proteins
green plants elaborate organic compounds from inorganic by means of photosynthesis
3.
a. : to work out in detail : develop
requested all nations to meet to elaborate a code of international law
b. : to expand, develop, or perfect especially by analysis or reasoning
the idea of mechanical energy was … inherent in Newton's work and was elaborated by those who followed him — W.V.Houston
intransitive verb
1. : to become elaborate
this particular area seems a point where such influences have flowered and elaborated — Ruth Underhill
2. : to expand something in detail : discuss something at length
he never elaborated on that remark — Irving Kristol
declined to elaborate in spite of strong hints that he tell all
: dwell on a subject
and then elaborated in response to questions — New York Times
Synonyms: see unfold