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Noun: enlightenment  en'lI-t(u)n-munt
  1. Education that results in understanding and the spread of knowledge
     
  2. (Hinduism and Buddhism) the beatitude that transcends the cycle of reincarnation; characterized by the extinction of desire and suffering and individual consciousness
    - nirvana
Noun: Enlightenment
  1. A movement in Europe from about 1650 until 1800 that advocated the use of reason and individualism instead of tradition and established doctrine
    "the Enlightenment brought about many humanitarian reforms";
    - Age of Enlightenment, Age of Reason

Derived forms: enlightenments

Type of: age, beatification, beatitude, blessedness, education, historic period, reform movement

Antonym: unenlightenment

Encyclopedia: Enlightenment