Elaborating

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. Giving additional details or information to clarify ; developing or expanding an idea, plan, or explanation in more depth
2. Supplying fuller information or details to make something clearer ; making an idea or concept more complex or thorough through expansion
3. Adding further explanation or particulars for better understanding ; extending and refining an idea or scheme with more detail

Etymology: "Elaborating" is the present participle of "elaborate", so its history is that of the verb. English took the verb in 1575 from Late Latin "ēlabōrātus", meaning "worked out", the past participle of "ēlabōrō", "to work out". That Latin verb combined "ē-", meaning "out, forth, fully", with "labor", meaning "work, toil, exertion", so the root idea is labour carried all the way through to completion. The sense of finishing a piece of work thoroughly is the one that shaped the English word, which is why an elaborate design is one worked out in fine detail. Adding more details to an existing account is a natural extension of that: each new detail is more labour spent on the same thing, carried further until it is complete.

Synonyms: expounding, developing, explaining, detailing, clarifying

Antonyms: simplifying, condensing, abridging, summarizing, truncating