dissertation
Americannoun
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a written essay, treatise, or thesis, especially one written by a candidate for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy.
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any formal discourse in speech or writing.
noun
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a written thesis, often based on original research, usually required for a higher degree
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a formal discourse
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of dissertation
First recorded in 1605–15; from Latin dissertātiōn-, stem of dissertātiō, equivalent to dissert + -ation
Explanation
A dissertation is a long piece of writing that uses research to bring to light an original idea. Don't go to grad school unless you're prepared to write, say, a 300-page dissertation on some topic. In everyday speech, we sometimes accuse people of delivering dissertations when they overload us with dull information. If you're annoyed with a long memo from your office manager about keeping the kitchen clean, you could mutter to a coworker, “How’d you like that dissertation Felix posted about rinsing out our mugs?”
Vocabulary lists containing dissertation
100 SAT Words Beginning with "D"
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The Kite Runner
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The Field Guide to the North American Teenager
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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.
The Mellon-funded Dissertation Innovation Fellowship, supported by $8.9 million since 2022, gives a living stipend to 45 graduate students annually.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 6, 2026
Dissertation embargoes like the one that prevented access to Mastriano’s work for nearly a decade are among the topics being examined by the outside team Mazerolle is having look into graduate research policies and practices.
From Seattle Times • Nov. 2, 2022
Reigniting old hostilities with Bentley, accusing him once more of being a connoisseur of indexes, implying that his Dissertation was larded with irrelevant quotation—this is an index with William King’s fingerprints all over it.
From Slate • Feb. 21, 2022
For all its obnoxiousness, Boyle Against Bentley is an extremely entertaining read, something that could never be said for Bentley’s Dissertation itself.
From Slate • Feb. 21, 2022
The identity of the Gods of three of the principal Indo-European nations has been shown by Sir William Jones in his luminous and graceful Dissertation on the Gods of Greece, Italy, and India.
From Philological Proofs of the Original Unity and Recent Origin of the Human Race by Johnes, Arthur James
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.
