exegesis

[ek-si-jee-sis]

noun

plural

exegeses 

1. critical explanation or interpretation of a text or portion of a text, especially of the Bible.

exegesis

/ ˌɛksɪˈdʒiːsɪs /

noun

1. explanation or critical interpretation of a text, esp of the Bible Compare eisegesis

Word History and Origins

Origin of exegesis¹

1610–20; < Greek exḗgēsis an interpretation, explanation, equivalent to ex- ex- ³ + ( h ) ēgē- (verbid stem of hēgeîsthai to guide) + -sis -sis

Word History and Origins

Origin of exegesis¹

C17: from Greek, from exēgeisthai to interpret, from _ex- ¹ + hēgeisthai to guide

Example Sentences

Beckett’s works defy easy exegesis, but as in many of his other plays, “Endgame” presents us with stylized images of the aimless burdens of existence, the isolation that can be little eased by companionship.

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First came Joel Thompson’s “To See the Sky,” obscurely subtitled “an exegesis for orchestra.”

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Compactness is a hallmark of her writing, made possible by both hard graft and her gifts for exposition and exegesis, which enabled her to digest and repackage huge quantities of material.

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Eden Medina, now a professor at MIT, published “Cybernetic Revolutionaries,” a work of history that offers a deep exegesis of the project.

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Although also woefully out of print, Mayo’s 1933 exegesis is, along with James M. Cain’s essay “Paradise” and Louis Adamic’s “Laughing in the Jungle,” among the great early studies of the city.

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