expository

[ ik-spoz-i-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee ]

/ ɪkˈspɒz ɪˌtɔr i, -ˌtoʊr i /

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adjective

of the nature of exposition; exposition; serving to expound, set forth, or explain: an expository essay; expository writing.

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Also ex·pos·i·tive

[ik-spoz-i-tiv] /ɪkˈspɒz ɪ tɪv/ .

Origin of expository

From the Medieval Latin word expositōrius, dating back to 1590–1600. See expositor, -tory¹

OTHER WORDS FROM expository

ex·pos·i·to·ri·ly, ex·pos·i·tive·ly, adverbsem·i·ex·pos·i·tive, adjectivesem·i·ex·pos·i·to·ry, adjective

Words nearby expository

expose, exposed, exposit, exposition, expositor, expository, exposome, ex post, ex post facto, ex post facto law, expostulate

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use expository in a sentence

He realized many educators shared his concern about nonfiction reading, knowledge of history and academic expository writing.
Stuff your 5,000-word limit! Students dare to write longer history papers.|Jay Mathews|October 17, 2021|Washington Post
Pollan is an astonishingly good writer, at times intimate and vulnerable, at times curious and expository, always compelling and credible.
A homegrown garden of mind-altering substances|David Herzberg|July 23, 2021|Washington Post
Shelving the expository track taken by many popular food movies and TV shows, which aim to inform viewers as much as possible, The Truffle Hunters unfolds as a series of oft-wordless vignettes.
‘The Truffle Hunters’ Will Pique Your Appetite and Push You to Dig a Little Deeper|Elissa Suh|March 5, 2021|Eater
Each novella in this book unfolds slowly, ambling through expository digressions with confidence.
Must Reads: ‘How to Survive the Titanic,’ ‘The Limit,’ and More|Lucy Scholes, Kevin Canfield, Mythili Rao|December 20, 2011|DAILY BEAST

This is beautiful expository writing, a combination of detailed, spellbinding narrative, and zinging judgment.
Wes Clark on Washington|General Wesley K. Clark|October 14, 2010|DAILY BEAST
Sir George Grey made a sensible speech, expository of the true condition of Canadian affairs.
The History of England in Three Volumes, Vol.III.|E. Farr and E. H. Nolan
Next, and (as far as date of collection goes) far less ancient, are the expository texts called the Brahmanas.
Myth, Ritual, and Religion, Vol. 1|Andrew Lang
In general, the aim of all remarks on Hume's writings in the present work is expository, not controversial.
Life and Correspondence of David Hume, Volume II (of 2)|John Hill Burton
Commonness vanished before Ewart, at his expository touch all things became memorable and rare.
Tono Bungay|H. G. Wells
The result is what may be called a descriptive, narrative, expository, or argumentative style.
Elementary Guide to Literary Criticism|F. V. N. Painter

British Dictionary definitions for expository

expository

expositive

/ (ɪkˈspɒzɪtərɪ, -trɪ) /

adjective

of, involving, or assisting in exposition; explanatory

Derived forms of expository

expositorily or expositively, adverb

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

expository

Origin of expository

OTHER WORDS FROM expository

Words nearby expository

Words related to expository

How to use expository in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for expository

expositive

Derived forms of expository