essay

[ noun es-ey for 1, 2; es-ey, e-sey for 3–5; verb e-sey ]

/ noun ˈɛs eɪ for 1, 2; ˈɛs eɪ, ɛˈseɪ for 3–5; verb ɛˈseɪ /

noun

a short literary composition on a particular theme or subject, usually in prose and generally analytic, speculative, or interpretative.

anything resembling such a composition: a picture essay.

an effort to perform or accomplish something; attempt.

Philately. a design for a proposed stamp differing in any way from the design of the stamp as issued.

Obsolete. a tentative effort; trial; assay.

verb (used with object)

to try; attempt.

to put to the test; make trial of.

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a granular metamorphic rock.

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Origin of essay

1475–85; < Middle French essayer, cognate with Anglo-French assayer to assay < Late Latin exagium a weighing, equivalent to *exag(ere), for Latin exigere to examine, test, literally, to drive out (see exact) + -ium -ium

OTHER WORDS FROM essay

es·say·er, nounpre·es·say, verb (used without object)un·es·sayed, adjectivewell-es·sayed, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH essay

assay essay

Words nearby essay

esrc, esro, esrog, ess, essaouira, essay, essay question, essayist, essayistic, esse, esse quam videri

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for essay

Someone recently sent me an old Joan Didion essay on self-respect that appeared in Vogue.
Daphne Merkin on Lena Dunham, Book Criticism, and Self-Examination|Mindy Farabee|December 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In “Barry,” an essay in Not That Kind of Girl, Dunham describes being sexually assaulted.
The Right's Rape Trolls vs. Lena Dunham|Emily Shire|December 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Nolte could not locate a “Barry” that fit the details listed in Dunham's essay.
The Right's Rape Trolls vs. Lena Dunham|Emily Shire|December 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Her own muddled feelings of confusion, shame, and fear are what make the essay great and what make the essay her story.
The Right's Rape Trolls vs. Lena Dunham|Emily Shire|December 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST

The book really came to be because that essay finally came to be.
Meghan Daum On Tackling The Unspeakable Parts Of Life|David Yaffe|December 6, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He then acknowledged that the notion of "a methodical regularity" in the Essay on Criticism was a "groundless opinion."
The Works of Alexander Pope, Volume 2 (of 10)|Alexander Pope
The Royal Academy of Berlin, offered in 1818, a prize of 3300 francs, for an essay on this topic.
North American Medical and Surgical Journal, Vol. 2, No. 3, July, 1826|Various
But he has some defects; in his Essay on the Human Understanding he is often too figurative for the subject.
Introduction to the Literature of Europe in the Fifteenth, Sixteenth, and Seventeenth Centuries, Vol. 2|Henry Hallam
The subject of the lunar librations was treated by Lagrange with great originality in an essay crowned by the Paris Lagrange.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 2, Slice 7|Various
It is the same with other revealed truths, and to prove that it is so is the principal object of this essay.
The Catholic World. Volume III; Numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6.|E. Rameur

British Dictionary definitions for essay

essay

noun (ˈɛseɪ, for senses 2, 3 also ɛˈseɪ)

a short literary composition dealing with a subject analytically or speculatively

an attempt or endeavour; effort

a test or trial

verb (ɛˈseɪ) (tr)

to attempt or endeavour; try

to test or try out

Word Origin for essay

C15: from Old French essaier to attempt, from essai an attempt, from Late Latin exagium a weighing, from Latin agere to do, compel, influenced by exigere to investigate

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

Cultural definitions for essay

essay

A short piece of writing on one subject, usually presenting the author's own views. Michel de Montaigne, Francis Bacon (see also Bacon), and Ralph Waldo Emerson are celebrated for their essays.

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essay