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”

Explanation

Instead of sharing all 147 lines of your favorite poem in class, you might want to read an excerpt, that is, just a part of the verses, so no one dozes off. Excerpt sounds a lot like "except" with an added "r," and it came into English in the 16th century from a Latin word meaning "plucked out." When the word is used as a verb, excerpt means to take a portion out, usually from a play, book, article, song, or other written work. And the part that is taken out also is called an excerpt, but it is a noun, that is, a thing. An excerpt is something you excerpt, or pluck out, from a larger piece.

Example Sentences

Listed in alphabetical order, with an excerpt from their survey responses:

From Los Angeles Times • May 1, 2026

An excerpt of their conversation, edited and condensed for clarity, appears below.

From Slate • Apr. 15, 2026

In an excerpt from his new memoir, ‘Generation Desperation,’ writer Alexander Hurst explains the anxieties that led him into the meme-stock world of WallStreetBets.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 5, 2026

Once, to be sure that I got a story right, I shared an excerpt of my book manuscript with Greenspan.

From Barron's • Feb. 27, 2026

Take this excerpt from a 340-word soliloquy in a novel by Rebecca Goldstein.

From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker

Related Words

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