explanation
[noun]
Synonyms:
- reason, account, answer, excuse, justification, motive, vindication
- description, clarification, definition, elucidation, illustration, interpretation

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Related Words: disentanglement, unscrambling, enlightenment, illumination, definition, meaning, resolution, solution, demonstration, example, exemplification, illustration, grounds, motive

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English Thesaurus: reason, explanation, motive, justification, grounds, ...

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

ex‧pla‧na‧tion S3 W2 /ˌekspləˈneɪʃən/ noun
[Word Family: adjective: unexplained, explanatory, explicable ≠ inexplicable; noun: explaining, explanation; verb: explain; adverb: inexplicably]

1. [uncountable and countable] the reasons you give for why something happened or why you did something
explanation of/for
Can you think of any explanation for this failure?
without explanation
The concert was cancelled without explanation.

2. [countable] a statement or piece of writing intended to describe how something works or make something easier to understand
provide/give an explanation
The ability to give clear explanations is the most important quality of the ideal teacher.
explanation of
I’ll try and give you a quick explanation of how the machine works.

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

explanation
noun
ADJ. convincing, credible, good, likely, logical, natural, obvious, plausible, probable, rational The most likely explanation is that his plane was delayed.
implausible, inadequate, unlikely | acceptable, adequate, reasonable, satisfactory, sufficient | no apparent There was no apparent explanation for the attack.
clear, coherent | complete, comprehensive, detailed, full | partial | complex, complicated | easy, simple | innocent, prosaic There's sure to be a perfectly innocent explanation for all this?though I admit it looks bizarre.
convenient | accepted, traditional There is no generally accepted explanation of this practice.
official | possible | correct, real, true | brief | lengthy, long | verbal | general | common the common explanations for hooliganism
only, sole It's the only explanation that makes any kind of sense.
causal The causal explanation must be that old age causes poverty, not that poverty causes people to be old.
ad hoc, post hoc post hoc (= after the event) explanations of historical changes that would have made no sense to anyone living at the time | cultural, historical, political, psychological, scientific, sociological, technical, theoretical
VERB + EXPLANATION have I had no explanation for her strange behaviour.
give (sb), offer (sb), provide (sb with) He only offered a partial explanation for his lateness.
enter into, go into, launch into She launched into a detailed explanation of every aspect of her work.
advance, propose, put forward one explanation advanced by Marxist historians
call for, need, require An explanation is clearly called for.
look for, seek | find, think of I can think of one possible explanation for her behaviour.
ask for, demand She wrote to the company demanding an explanation.
wait for | deserve, merit I suppose you deserve an explanation.
owe sb I think you owe me an explanation.
accept | defy Her success has been so remarkable as to defy explanation.
EXPLANATION + VERB lie The simplest explanation for his achievements lies in his greater ability and superiority over his contemporaries at university.
emerge, occur to sb, present itself, suggest itself No single clear explanation emerged from the experiments. A more credible explanation now occurred to her. Another quite plausible explanation presented itself.
PREP. in ~ ‘I've worked with them before, you see,’ he added, in explanation.
without ~ She left suddenly and without explanation. | ~ about He entered into a technical explanation about software and programming.
~ as to He provided no explanation as to why he was late.
~ for There is probably some perfectly logical explanation for their behaviour.
~ from We are still waiting for a full explanation from the teacher concerned.
PHRASES an attempt at explanation The men left quickly with no attempt at explanation.
by way of explanation ‘I had to see you, ’ he said, by way of explanation.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

explanation

have an explanation
Does the hospital have any explanation for why he died?
give an explanation
The police gave no explanation for their actions.
provide/offer an explanation
This theory may provide an explanation for the origins of the universe.
ask for/demand an explanation
When I asked for an explanation, the people at the office said they didn't know.
Furious parents are demanding an explanation from the school.
wait for an explanation (=expect an explanation)
She continued to stare at him in silence, waiting for an explanation.
find/think of/come up with an explanation
Scientists have been unable to find an explanation for this phenomenon.
owe (somebody) an explanation
I think you owe me some kind of explanation.
accept an explanation (=believe that it is true or correct)
The court accepted her explanation.
need/require an explanation
We think the minister’s decision requires an explanation.
a possible explanation
Can anyone think of a possible explanation for why this is happening?
the most likely/probable explanation (=one that is probably true)
The most likely explanation is that John missed the bus.
The most probable explanation is that the water was contaminated.
an obvious explanation (=one that is easy to see or notice)
There is no obvious explanation for his strange behaviour.
a reasonable/plausible explanation (=one that is easy to believe)
Pilot error is the most plausible explanation for the crash.
a satisfactory/adequate explanation (=one that explains something completely)
A bank must offer an adequate explanation of all its charges.
a convincing/credible explanation (=one that you can believe is true)
The author fails to provide a convincing explanation for the main character’s motives.
a logical/rational explanation (=one that is based on facts)
Physics finally gave us a rational explanation for the atom’s strange behaviour.
further explanation (=additional reasons)
He gave no further explanation for leaving, and she did not ask for any.
there is no apparent explanation (=used when there is no explanation that you can think of)
There was no apparent explanation for the attack.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

reason why something happens, or why someone does something:
What was the reason for the delay?
I don’t know the reason why he left his last job.
explanation a set of reasons that helps you to understand why something happens, especially when it seems difficult to understand:
There are various possible explanations for climate change.
Is there any explanation for his behavior?
motive a reason that makes someone decide to do something – often used about crimes:
Police say that there is no obvious motive for the attack.
justification a good reason for doing something that seems wrong:
There is never any justification for torture or abuse.
They try to use the situation in the Middle East as a justification for killing innocent civilians.
There’s no justification for this type of behaviour.
grounds a reason that makes it right or fair to do something, especially according to legal, official, or moral rules:
The court will decide if she has grounds for divorce.
They claim the war is justified on moral grounds (=because of moral reasons).
basis the main ideas or reasons on which something is based:
The doctor makes his decisions purely on the basis of clinical observation.
What do you think is the basis for this advice?
rationale /ˌræʃəˈnɑːl $ -ˈnæl/ formal a set of reasons that are used to explain why someone does something in a particular way:
the rationale behind the government’s economic reforms
This chapter explains the nature of yearly plans, and provides a rationale for their use.
excuse a reason that you give to explain why you have done something bad, or not done something that you should have done – especially one that is not completely true:
She said she couldn’t come because she had to work late, but it was just an excuse.
a feeble excuse (=one that is hard to believe)
pretext especially written an untrue reason that you give for doing or not doing something, in order to hide the real reason:
He would often find some pretext to go out in the evening alone.
They used this as a pretext for taking military action.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲