说明 (shuō míng) is a general verb meaning 'to explain, show, or prove' something, often by giving reasons or details. It differs from 证明 (zhèng míng), which specifically means 'to prove' with evidence or facts. As a noun, 说明 means 'explanation, instructions, or caption' (e.g., in a manual), while 说明书 (shuō míng shū) is the physical booklet of instructions.