anthology

[an-thol-uh-jee]

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noun, plural an·thol·o·gies.

a book or other collection of selected writings by various authors, usually in the same literary form, of the same period, or on the same subject: an anthology of Elizabethan drama; an anthology of modern philosophy.

a collection of selected writings by one author.

Origin of anthology

1630–40; < Latin anthologia < Greek: collection of poems, literally, gathering of flowers, equivalent to anthológ(os) flower-gathering (antho- antho- + -logos, adj. derivative of légein to pick up, collect) + -ia -ia

Related formsan·tho·log·i·cal

[an-thuh-loj-i-kuh l] /ˌæn θəˈlɒdʒ ɪ kəl/, adjectivean·tho·log·i·cal·ly, adverban·thol·o·gist, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for anthology

album, compendium, selection, garland, omnibus, compilation, treasury, digest

Examples from the Web for anthology

Contemporary Examples of anthology

The trend led to a resurgence of anthology television, and renewed interest in The Twilight Zone.
How a War-Weary Vet Created ‘The Twilight Zone’
Rich Goldstein
November 13, 2014
The court house is now the Anthology Archive and the firehouse is a Chinese community center.
Pryor Dodge's Two-Wheeled Obsession Is Now a Museum of Bike History
Anthony Haden-Guest
September 15, 2014
In December 2012, Ebenstein launched a Kickstarter for her anthology.
Brooklyn’s Museum of Death: Inside Morbid Anatomy’s House of Intriguing Horrors
Nina Strochlic
July 10, 2014
From the start, creator Nic Pizzolatto designed it as an anthology series.
‘True Detective’ Finale Review: Close to Perfection
Andrew Romano
March 10, 2014
Today, Cunard is best known as the compiler and publisher of Negro: An Anthology (1934).
What Can You Learn About Writers From Their Personal Libraries?
Richard Oram
September 17, 2013

Historical Examples of anthology

To select an anthology from his work were surely the pleasantest of tasks.
Views and Reviews
William Ernest Henley
Selections from these, arranged in chronological order, appear in this anthology.
Tudor and Stuart Love Songs
Various
For these reasons we have admitted few punning epigrams into this anthology, and those only as examples of a faulty kind.
An Essay on True and Apparent Beauty in which from Settled Principles is Rendered the Grounds for Choosing and Rejecting Epigrams
Pierre Nicole
These two contributors to the "Others" Anthology write logopoeia.
Instigations
Ezra Pound
The anthology displays also Mr. Williams' praiseworthy opacity.
Instigations
Ezra Pound

British Dictionary definitions for anthology

anthology

noun plural -gies

a collection of literary passages or works, esp poems, by various authors

any printed collection of literary pieces, songs, works of art, etc

Derived Formsanthological (ˌænθəˈlɒdʒɪkəl), adjectiveanthologist, noun

Word Origin for anthology

C17: from Medieval Latin anthologia, from Greek, literally: a flower gathering, from anthos flower + legein to collect

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

Word Origin and History for anthology

1630s, "collection of poetry," from Latin anthologia, from Greek anthologia "collection of small poems and epigrams by several authors," literally "flower-gathering," from anthos "a flower" (see anther) + logia "collection, collecting," from legein "gather" (see lecture (n.)). Modern sense (which emerged in Late Greek) is metaphoric, "flowers" of verse, small poems by various writers gathered together.