commentary
Americannoun
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a series of comments, explanations, or annotations.
a commentary on the Bible; news followed by a commentary.
-
an explanatory essay or treatise.
a commentary on a play; Blackstone's commentaries on law.
-
anything serving to illustrate a point, prompt a realization, or exemplify, especially in the case of something unfortunate.
The dropout rate is a sad commentary on our school system.
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Usually commentaries. records of facts or events.
Commentaries written by Roman lawyers give us information on how their courts functioned.
noun
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an explanatory series of notes or comments
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a spoken accompaniment to a broadcast, film, etc, esp of a sporting event
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an explanatory essay or treatise on a text
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(usually plural) a personal record of events or facts
the commentaries of Caesar
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of commentary
1375–1425; late Middle English commentaries (plural) < Latin commentārium notebook, noun use of neuter of commentārius, equivalent to comment ( um ) comment + -ārius -ary
Explanation
When the language in a work of literature such as "Beowulf" is difficult to understand, it is helpful to read from an edition that includes a commentary — an explanation or expansion or criticism added to the original material. Editorials go hand-in-hand with commentaries, since both express a writer's opinions. Commentary can be oral as well as written. Each year, following the President's State of the Union address, you can tune into the networks for commentary from respected news anchors. In fact, political commentary has become so pervasive in our media that some feel it has replaced reporting.
Vocabulary lists containing commentary
Argumentative Writing, List 2
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Journalism
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Awkward
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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.
See Examples For:
Tesla’s earnings commentary wasn’t enough to justify the company’s big-spending ways, and its shares are sliding on Thursday.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 23, 2026
Prices are likely supported by a broad pullback in global bond yields and a softer dollar as markets weigh the prospect of renewed U.S.-Iran talks, says Tickmill’s Joseph Dahrieh in commentary.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026
Owens’ arguments are often nonsensical, but because she commands an audience of more than 6 million YouTube subscribers, they have enough power to force the rest of the commentary class to rebut them.
From Slate ● Jul. 21, 2026
"It is vital that there should be no reporting, commentary or sharing of information which could in anyway prejudice these proceedings."
From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2026
I now had to reconstruct the text upon which the simple commentary had been based.
From "The Chosen" by Chaim Potok
Watch highlights of the weekend's action on Sportscene, listen to match commentaries on Sportsound, and follow live text updates on the BBC Sport website and app.
From BBC ● Mar. 13, 2026
And some advisers produce their own data-driven market commentaries that look ahead at trends, which can affect client portfolios.
From MarketWatch ● Jan. 26, 2026
A collection of commentaries by Xi Jinping, published in December in Qiushi, a magazine closely read by policymakers, sparked optimism the government could be ready to act.
From Barron's ● Dec. 27, 2025
Management commentaries point to continued price pressure, worsened by new supply from China’s offshore facilities, they note.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 10, 2025
A later commentary tried to reconcile the three commentaries by the method of pilpul, the result being a happy one for someone who enjoyed pilpul but quite strained as far as I was concerned.
From "The Chosen" by Chaim Potok
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
