il·lu·mi·na·tion (?-lo?o?m?-n??sh?n)n.1. a. The act of illuminating.b. The state of being illuminated.2. A source of light.3. Decorative lighting.4. Spiritual or intellectual enlightenment.5. Clarification; elucidation.6. a. The art or act of decorating a text, page, or initial letter with ornamental designs, images, or lettering.b. An example of this art.7. Physics The luminous flux per unit area at any point on a surface exposed to incident light. Also called illuminance.American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.illumination (??lu?m??ne???n) n1. the act of illuminating or the state of being illuminated2. a source of light3. (often plural) chiefly Brit a light or lights, esp coloured lights, used as decoration in streets, parks, etc4. spiritual or intellectual enlightenment; insight or understanding5. the act of making understood; clarification6. (Printing, Lithography & Bookbinding) decoration in colours, gold, or silver used on some manuscripts or printed works7. (General Physics) physics another name (not in technical usage) for illuminance il?lumi?national adjCollins English Dictionary ? Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014il?lu?mi?na?tion (??lu m??ne? ??n) n. 1. an act or instance of illuminating. 2. the state of being illuminated. 3. a decoration of lights. 4. Sometimes, illuminations. a display using lights as a major decoration. 5. intellectual or spiritual enlightenment. 6. the intensity of light falling at a given place on a lighted surface; the luminous flux incident per unit area, expressed in lumens per unit of area. 7. a supply of light. 8. decoration of a manuscript or book with a painted design in color and gold or silver. 9. a design used in such decoration. [1300?50; Middle English