explain/Ikˋsplen; IkˈspleIn/v [I,T] 1 to tell someone about something in a way which makes it easy to understand 解释﹐说明: explain (sth) to sb I explained the rules to Sara. 我向萨拉解释这些规则。+how/what/why etc Can someone explain how this thing works? 谁能讲解一下这东西是如何工作的吗?+that He explained that it had been a difficult film to make. 他解释说这是一部非常难拍的电影。2 to give the reason for something 解释﹐说明…的原因: +why/how etc Brad never explained why he was late. 布拉德从不解释他为什么迟到。+that I explained that I’d missed the bus. 我解释说﹐我没赶上公共汽车。explain sth away phr v to make something seem less important or less serious, by giving reasons for it 为…辩解﹐把…搪塞过去: Claire tried to explain away the bruises on her arm. 克莱尔试图把胳膊上的瘀伤搪塞过去。