excerpt

American  

[ek-surpt, ik-surpt] / ˈɛk sɜrpt, ɪkˈsɜrpt /

noun

1. a passage or quotation taken or selected from a book, document, film, or the like; extract.

   Synonyms:

   part, section, portion, selection

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verb (used with object)

1. to take or select (a passage) from a book, film, or the like; extract.

2. to take or select passages from (a book, film, or the like); abridge by choosing representative sections.

excerpt British  

noun

1. a part or passage taken from a book, speech, play, etc, and considered on its own; extract

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verb

1. (tr) to take (a part or passage) from a book, speech, play, etc

Other Word Forms

• excerpter noun
• excerptible adjective
• excerption noun
• excerptor noun
• unexcerpted adjective

Etymology

Origin of excerpt

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English, from Latin excerptus “picked out,” past participle of excerpere “to pick out, pluck out,” from ex- ex- ¹ + -cerpere, combining form of carpere “to pluck”

Example Sentences

As disclosed in the chapter, we did excerpt and adapt some content from a 2020 law review article that we co-authored with Mr. Burger.

From The Wall Street Journal

In the climate science chapter, footnote 77 says “discussion of attribution research has been adapted, and, in some cases, excerpted from the authors’ prior publications on this topic.”

From The Wall Street Journal

When Seattle-based professor Daniel Bessner was scrolling through excerpts of the messages on X from his couch, he thought of how his own students put much more effort into their spelling.

From The Wall Street Journal

Below are excerpts from AFP's interview with Velez, edited for clarity.

From Barron's

Prokofiev’s Shakespeare-inspired music is excerpted and heard on a recording, sometimes harshly produced on the hall’s reverberant sound system.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• extract
• fragment
• passage
• piece
• portion
• quotation
• selection