enlightenment Meaning, Definition & Usage

1. noun education that results in understanding and the spread of knowledge
   
2. noun (Hinduism and Buddhism) the beatitude that transcends the cycle of reincarnation; characterized by the extinction of desire and suffering and individual consciousness
   nirvana.
   
3. noun a movement in Europe from about 1650 until 1800 that advocated the use of reason and individualism instead of tradition and established doctrine
   Age of Reason.
   
   • the Enlightenment brought about many humanitarian reforms

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