compendium

American  

[kuhm-pen-dee-uhm] / kəmˈpɛn di əm /

Also compend

noun

plural

compendiums, compendia

1. a brief treatment or account of a subject, especially an extensive subject; concise treatise.

   a compendium of medicine.

   Synonyms:

   conspectus, digest, survey

2. a summary, epitome, or abridgment.

3. a full list or inventory.

   a compendium of their complaints.

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compendium British  

/ kəmˈpɛndɪəm /

noun

1. a book containing a collection of useful hints

2. a selection, esp of different games or other objects in one container

3. a concise but comprehensive summary of a larger work

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Etymology

Origin of compendium

1575–85; < Latin: gain, saving, shortcut, abridgment, equivalent to com- com- + pend- (stem of pendere to cause to hang down, weigh) + -ium -ium

Explanation

When you search an online encyclopedia, you are searching a compendium of information on just about everything. A compendium is a comprehensive collection of something. You can also use the word compendium to describe a collection of written works. If you gather all of the anecdotes your parents and grandparents have told you into a book, you'll have created a compendium of family stories. The plural of compendium is either compendiums or compendia.

Example Sentences

About 65,000 people were in ICE detention as of 30 November 2025, according to data obtained by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse's immigration project, a compendium of government data from Syracuse University.

From BBC • Jan. 9, 2026

“He’s been called the Christmas devil,” said Jeff Belanger, author of “The Fright Before Christmas,” a compendium of so-called “Yuletide monsters.”

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 25, 2025

Edward Brooke-Hitching supplies all sorts of tidbits to beguile readers ages 7-9 in this entertaining compendium.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 21, 2025

Corporate earnings calls provide a mixed picture similar to the Fed’s Beige Book, the compendium of anecdotes from the 12 district banks prepared for the Oct. 28-29 Federal Open Market Committee meeting, Boockvar says.

From Barron's • Oct. 17, 2025

Just inside, a note identifying the publisher as R. L. Polk & Co, the name everyone uses when they talk about the compendium of businesses and people.

From "The Brightwood Code" by Monica Hesse