summation

American  

[suh-mey-shuhn] / səˈmeɪ ʃən /

noun

1. the act or process of summing.

2. the result of this; an aggregate or total.

3. a review or recapitulation of previously stated facts or statements, often with a final conclusion or conclusions drawn from them.

4. Law. the final arguments of opposing attorneys before a case goes to the jury.

5. Physiology. the arousal of impulses by a rapid succession of stimuli, carried either by separate sensory neurons spatial summation or by the same sensory neuron temporal summation.

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summation British  

/ sʌˈmeɪʃən /

noun

1. the act or process of determining a sum; addition

2. the result of such an act or process

3. a summary

4. law the concluding statements made by opposing counsel in a case before a court

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Other Word Forms

• summational
  adjective
• summative
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of summation

1750–60; < Medieval Latin summātiōn- (stem of summātiō ), equivalent to summāt ( us ) (past participle of summāre to sum; see -ate ¹) + -iōn- -ion

Explanation

A summation is a final review or conclusion, often given in a court of law. As the incompetent lawyer approached the bench for the final time, he told the judge and jury, "In summation, my client is guilty of all charges." At the end of every court case, both the defense and prosecution give a summation — a quick rundown of all the facts from the case to help the jury decide on a verdict. When used outside of the courtroom, summation simply means recounting a group of items or events. At the end of a father-son camping trip, the son gives his mother a summation of the trip. You'll note that summation begins with the prefix sum-, meaning "to add up." In fact, another definition for summation is the process of adding things together, or the final sum.

Example Sentences

In summation, these actions point to a more returns-oriented playbook, the analysts say.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 20, 2026

With all that said, a bonfire composed of burning laptops is a good summation of 2026’s current flavor of anxiety.

From Slate • Feb. 8, 2026

"I was sort of there, hovering," is his summation of his involvement.

From BBC • Jan. 4, 2026

I’m including myself in that summation, since I meant to review one show on this list but kept kicking that flaming can down the road until its season ended.

From Salon • Dec. 17, 2025

But the same little notch must be used for divisions between branches of every size, whether it’s the end of a minor digression, the end of a major summation, or anything in between.

From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker