expository
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of expository
From the Medieval Latin word expositōrius, dating back to 1590–1600. See expositor, -tory 1
Explanation
The first few minutes of a first date typically consist of expository chit-chat, meaning that that's when people fill each other in on the basics: where they're from, what they studied in school, and what they want to be when they grow up. It's background info. A synonym for expository is explanatory. It might help to relate the words, as expository dialogue usually exists to give the audience an explanation of a character's previous actions. The challenge for a playwright is to communicate exposition by crafting expository dialogue that isn't boring. It's often a sign of amateur writing when the expository information stands out as just that. The experienced writer can hide the expository information inside the action and other speeches.
Vocabulary lists containing expository
Jim Burke's Academic Vocabulary List
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TEKS ELAR Academic Vocabulary List (5th-7th grades)
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100 SAT Words Beginning with "E"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
For all of the film’s expository merit, for all of the care and efficiency Hughes exhibited in creating such wonderful and instantly lovable women, “Pretty in Pink” flubs the landing.
From Salon ● Feb. 28, 2026
With judicious trimming, particularly of the occasional puddle of expository or repetitive dialogue, the play would gain a tauter pace.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 26, 2025
Plus, coming into “Dune: Prophecy” as a stone-cold uninitiate is a challenge for which the script compensates using a combination of summary via narration and a brief, expository title card.
From Salon ● Nov. 17, 2024
There might be a little too much description, and long, learned, expository passages coming out of the mouths of police sergeants.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 8, 2024
The interweaving of the personal and the philosophical in this excerpt is being used as an expository device, to help us understand the issues that Spinoza wrote about.
From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
