Explicit or implicit?
explicit is an adjective meaning “Very specific, clear, or detailed”; implicit is an adjective meaning “Suggested indirectly, without being directly expressed; Implied”. In written English (wordfreq, 2021 data) explicit is about 3.2 times as common as implicit.
What is the difference between explicit and implicit?
| explicit | implicit | |
|---|---|---|
| Part of speech | adjective, noun, phrase | adjective |
| Meaning | Very specific, clear, or detailed Containing material (e.g. language or film footage) that might be deemed offensive or graphic through clear and direct expressions The final few words of a text | Suggested indirectly, without being directly expressed; Implied Contained in the essential nature of something but not openly shown |
| Example | I gave explicit instructions for him to stay here, but he followed me, anyway | Poets often leave behind an implicit message within their words |
| Pronunciation | /ɪkˈsplɪs.ɪt/ /ɛk-/ | /ɪmˈplɪsɪt/ |
| In writing | 9.1 times per million words | 2.8 times per million words |
Sources: explicit and implicit in the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
Every current meaning of explicit and implicit
explicit
- 1
Very specific, clear, or detailed
I gave explicit instructions for him to stay here, but he followed me, anyway
- 2
The final few words of a text
- 3
Containing material (e.g. language or film footage) that might be deemed offensive or graphic through clear and direct expressions
The film had several scenes including explicit language and sex
implicit
- 1
Suggested indirectly, without being directly expressed; Implied
Poets often leave behind an implicit message within their words
- 2
Contained in the essential nature of something but not openly shown
- 3
Having no reservations or doubts; unquestioning or unconditional; usually said of faith or trust
Source: the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); obsolete, archaic, dialect and rare senses left out.
Which is more common, explicit or implicit?
explicit appears 9.1 times per million words; implicit 2.8 times per million words.
explicit 9.1 times per million wordsimplicit 2.8 times per million words
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How many people search explicit vs implicit?
“explicit vs implicit” is searched about 12,100 times a month on Google and 410 on Bing in the United States. Google counts close variants of a query together (“implicit vs explicit”, “explicit or implicit”).
Sources: Google Ads keyword data through DataForSEO and Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, the average month from September 2025 to August 2026.