essay
noun
a short literary composition on a particular theme or subject, usually in prose and generally analytic, speculative, or interpretative.
essaying
-
present participleof essay.present participle
A verb form that is used in progressive verb constructions and may also function as a modifier or a gerund.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Here, Sinatra is clearly stretching the limits of what was possible for a popular singer—one can’t imagine any of his predecessors or contemporaries essaying a work as long and complex as this.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 20, 2025
The actress was a member of the National Theatre Company at the Old Vic from 1972-75, essaying Lady Macbeth in 1972.
From Salon ● Sep. 10, 2020
Like all reflective objects though, the act of essaying has a twoness about it.
From Washington Post ● May 11, 2020
All eyes would otherwise be on Antony Sher, who is essaying this most daunting of tragic roles in the Royal Shakespeare Company production at the Barbican directed by Gregory Doran.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 30, 2016
The dinner was arranged partly as a farewell to me and partly in acknowledgment of the aid I had given to young American artists essaying an operatic career.
From The Mapleson Memoirs, vol I 1848-1888 by James H. Mapleson
