summary
a comprehensive and usually brief abstract, recapitulation, or compendium of previously stated facts or statements.
brief and comprehensive; concise.
direct and prompt; unceremoniously fast: to treat someone with summary dispatch.
(of legal proceedings, jurisdiction, etc.) conducted without, or exempt from, the various steps and delays of a formal trial.
Origin of summary
1synonym study For summary
word story For summary
Summārium is a compound of adjective summus “highest, topmost, top” and the noun suffix -ārium. ( Summa, the feminine of summus used as a noun, in mathematics and accounting means “sum, total”: The Romans added their numbers from the bottom up and wrote the total in summā “on the top.”)
Medieval Latin has the adjective summārius “abbreviated, summary,” which was borrowed into Middle English in the 15th century.The adjectival meaning “relating to legal proceedings conducted without certain required formalities” is recorded about 1765, though the corresponding meaning of the adverb summarily appears much earlier.
Other words for summary
Other words from summary
- sum·mar·i·ness [suh-mair-i-nis], /səˈmɛər ɪ nɪs/, noun
Words Nearby summary
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use summary in a sentence
That distinction is as pat a summary of the moment as you’ll find.
What happens to an entrenched two-party system when one party undermines the system? | Philip Bump | February 12, 2021 | Washington PostHoffman said that the public can still access portions of a petitioner’s court file, including summaries of expert opinions about why the person is safe be released.
Sacramento Report: The School Reopening Battle Is Raging | Sara Libby | January 29, 2021 | Voice of San DiegoOnce you’ve made your choices, click Next and then Reset on the summary screens.
How to reset your devices without losing everything | David Nield | January 28, 2021 | Popular-ScienceKeep in mind that any particular score is a summary of other metrics you should look to find activity preceding or lining up with a failing score milestone in order to figure out what might be causing the problem.
He began his affiliation with McWilliams Ballard in 2000, according to a career summary of Rieschick’s tenure with the real estate company published on its website.
Prominent D.C. Realtor, avid traveler Kurt Rieschick dies at 50 | Lou Chibbaro Jr. | January 20, 2021 | Washington Blade
He and other Taliban sources claim that in Karachi as many as 50 to 60 Taliban are given summary executions each month.
Pakistani School Killers Want to Strike the U.S. | Sami Yousafzai, Christopher Dickey | December 17, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTBut the lawyer deleted that line from the final version of the summary.
The Most Gruesome Moments in the CIA ‘Torture Report’ | Shane Harris, Tim Mak | December 9, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTYou should look at our summary of benefits,” she continued, directing me to a handy online chart of “coverage examples.
Despite ObamaCare, US Health System Still a Complete Mess | Molly Worthen | October 11, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTInstead, the Lift monitors posture all day long and gives a daily summary of performance.
We see them for a few minutes, then pen a quick summary and leave directions for the nurses to follow.
Real Life Lazarus: When Patients Rise From the Dead | Sandeep Jauhar | August 21, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThis appears to me a very convenient and sufficient summary of all I am to tell.
The following table contains a summary of the composition of ten different animals in different stages of fattening.
Elements of Agricultural Chemistry | Thomas AndersonMalcolm gave Saumarez a summary of affairs in the Northwest Provinces as they rode on ahead of the troop.
The Red Year | Louis TracyShe felt that her summary was precipitate, and drawing herself up defiantly looked hard at Mrs. Leslie.
Ancestors | Gertrude AthertonAccordingly, in the next seven stanzas, we have a fair summary of the general contents of the Somnium Scipionis.
Chaucer's Works, Volume 1 (of 7) -- Romaunt of the Rose; Minor Poems | Geoffrey Chaucer
British Dictionary definitions for summary
/ (ˈsʌmərɪ) /
a brief account giving the main points of something
performed arbitrarily and quickly, without formality: a summary execution
(of legal proceedings) short and free from the complexities and delays of a full trial
summary jurisdiction the right a court has to adjudicate immediately upon some matter arising during its proceedings
giving the gist or essence
Origin of summary
1Derived forms of summary
- summarily, adverb
- summariness, noun
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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