the Enlightenment
noun
: a movement of the 18th century that stressed the belief that science and logic give people more knowledge and understanding than tradition and religion
Examples of the Enlightenment in a Sentence
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Passions, for those men of the Enlightenment, fought against reason.
—
Megan Garber, The Atlantic, 29 Apr. 2025
Saul posited that technocratic elites had fetishized the Enlightenment ideal of rationality to the point of extremism.
—Jennifer Szalai, New York Times, 9 Apr. 2025
That will require us – all of humanity – to call on all the great thinking that got us out of the dark ages, into the Renaissance, through the Enlightenment and the Industrial Revolution, and into the modern age.
—Eli Amdur, Forbes.com, 13 Apr. 2025
The secular mindset that emerged from the Enlightenment — the belief that religion would fade while science delivered heaven on earth — has failed.
—Mike Woodruff, Chicago Tribune, 28 Mar. 2025
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Megan Garber, The Atlantic, 29 Apr. 2025
Saul posited that technocratic elites had fetishized the Enlightenment ideal of rationality to the point of extremism.
—Jennifer Szalai, New York Times, 9 Apr. 2025
That will require us – all of humanity – to call on all the great thinking that got us out of the dark ages, into the Renaissance, through the Enlightenment and the Industrial Revolution, and into the modern age.
—Eli Amdur, Forbes.com, 13 Apr. 2025
The secular mindset that emerged from the Enlightenment — the belief that religion would fade while science delivered heaven on earth — has failed.
—Mike Woodruff, Chicago Tribune, 28 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for the Enlightenment
Cite this Entry
“The Enlightenment.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/the%20Enlightenment. Accessed 20 May. 2025.
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