Whats the difference between explicit and implicit information?

Explicit and implicit have opposite meanings. Explicit information is clearly stated, so there is no room for misinterpretation. Implicit information is not expressed directly, but can be interpreted from the primary meaning of a sentence.

Explicit information: something stated clearly in a text, e.g. It was raining. Implicit information: something that is implied in a text, e.g. As it was raining and the man was sat on his own, one could only assume he was feeling sad.

implicit ....implied, suggested, hinted at.

explicit...clear, defined, clearly stated.

She implied that the food was burnt by sniffing the air in distaste.

He was explicit with his instructions on how to plant the onion seeds.

Explicit means obvious meaning while Implicit means unobvious meaning. So if something was explicit in a text, it means that the information is clearly stated for you. 

Explicit information is expressed clearly and definitively with precise and exact meaning. 

For example: ‘It was a bright, sunny morning and there wasn't a single cloud in the sky, yet the cold northerly wind meant that everybody was wearing winter clothing.’

This sentence uses explicit information that leaves no room for debate and the reader cannot assume anything other than what the words say.

Implicit information is implied or hinted at using indirect and vague language. 

For example: There was a something ominous about the way he expressed his concern when after the argument he calmly uttered “be careful on your way home, as it would be a shame if something happened to you.”

This sentence is completely ambiguous and is open to interpretation. The person expressing the concern hasn’t said he would directly harm the other person but he could easily be understood to be threatening harm because of the surrounding context. 

Think of Explicit as being something that is Exposed and Implicit as something being Implied.

So explicit refers to when something is being obviously expressed whilst implicit refers to when something is indirectly being expressed.

In short, explicit information is right there on the page, in writing, you can’t miss it. Implicit information is those ideas you pick out by reading between the lines.

A real life example - your friend turns up to school and tells you “I’m so tired, I didn’t get enough sleep last night”. They’re telling you explicitly they’re tired. Now another friend walks in holding a coffee, an energy drink, and their shirt is buttoned up wrong. They start falling asleep 5 minutes into class. They didn’t say the words “I’m tired” but you can tell implicitly that they’re exhausted.

Hi Stanley,

Explicit information is any information that is stated literally. For example: 'The forest was dark and dreary' is explicit because it leaves nothing open to interpretation. The author has stated factually that the forest is both dark and dreary. Conversely, implicit information is any information that is indirectly suggested without saying the meaning outright. For example, the sentence: 'If you don't raise my salary, I'll have to review my options' suggests that the speaker intends to leave the job unless the boss raises their salary, hence the phrasing 'review my options.' In summary, any explicit answer is any meaning that is directly stated by the author leaving no room for interpretation. By comparison, an implicit answer is a meaning that is indirectly suggested.

I hope this was helpful.

Hi there, Stanley, excellent question. Explicit meanings are those bits of information in the text that are clear and evidently understood - information that does not require much thought since they're obvious. For example, "Linda's face turned red with grief". Implicit, however, refers to information within the text that holds some level of ambiguity. That means it isn't so easy to understand the rooted meaning as it requires some thought. For example, "Linda's face turned red".

Hi Stanley

Explicit information is what's on the surface. Implicit information is what's just below that.

The phrase 'It's a bit cold' is explicitly about the current temperature, but it also implies that the speaker might prefer to be somewhere warmer!

I hope this helps.

Best wishes

Oli