The meaning of Essay

verb

Point or direct (a weapon or camera) at a target.

Usage examples:

Aim the camcorder at some suitable object

noun

A purpose or intention; a desired outcome.

Usage examples:

Our primary aim is to achieve financial discipline

abbreviation

Alternative investment market (a subsidiary market of the london stock exchange that allows small companies to be traded without the expense of a full market listing).

noun

An act of assessing something or someone.

Usage examples:

She carried out a thorough appraisal

noun

A particular item or object.

Usage examples:

Small household articles

verb

A piece of writing included with others in a newspaper, magazine, or other publication.

Usage examples:

An article about middle-aged executives

noun

A piece of writing on a particular subject in a newspaper or magazine

Usage examples:

An article on chinese art, the police want a description of each missing article.

noun

A task or piece of work allocated to someone as part of a job or course of study.

Usage examples:

A homework assignment

An undertaking that you have been told to perform

noun

A particular job or responsibility given to you

Usage examples:

[ c ] the homework assignment was to read chapter 2 in our history book.

verb

Make an effort to achieve or complete (something difficult).

Usage examples:

She attempted a comeback in 2001

noun

An effort to achieve or complete a difficult task or action.

Usage examples:

An attempt to halt the bombings

verb

Strike hard and violently.

Usage examples:

They bashed him over the head with a blunt object

noun

A heavy blow.

Usage examples:

A bash on the head

noun

An expression of opinions or offering of explanations about an event or situation.

Usage examples:

A biting social commentary about the divide between rich and poor

noun

A series of remarks describing an event, esp. on radio or television, or a set of written notes explaining or expressing an opinion on a text or subject

Usage examples:

[ c ] the television commentary on the olympic games

noun

The nature of something's ingredients or constituents; the way in which a whole or mixture is made up.

Usage examples:

The social composition of villages

noun

Something that a person has created or written, esp. a text, a work of art, or a piece of music, or the act of creating or writing something

Usage examples:

[ c ] a composition for piano and flute, [ c ] in school we had to write a composition (= short pie…

noun

The way in which the parts of something are arranged

Usage examples:

The composition of sth the company said it plans to change the composition of its board of director…

noun

A line on the surface of something along which it has split without breaking apart.

Usage examples:

A hairline crack down the middle of the glass

verb

Break or cause to break without a complete separation of the parts.

Usage examples:

The ice all over the bog had cracked

adjective

Very good or skilful.

Usage examples:

He is a crack shot

noun

The expression of disapproval of someone or something on the basis of perceived faults or mistakes.

Usage examples:

He received a lot of criticism

noun

An opinion given about something or someone, esp. a negative opinion, or the activity of making such judgments

Usage examples:

[ c ] it was meant as a suggestion, not a criticism., [ u ] he was singled out for strong criticism…

noun

A detailed analysis and assessment of something, especially a literary, philosophical, or political theory.

Usage examples:

A critique of marxist historicism

verb

Evaluate (a theory or practice) in a detailed and analytical way.

Usage examples:

The authors critique the methods and practices used in the research

noun

Written or spoken communication or debate.

Usage examples:

The language of political discourse

verb

Speak or write authoritatively about a topic.

Usage examples:

She could discourse at great length on the history of europe

noun

Spoken or written discussion

Usage examples:

[ u ] political discourse, [ c ] the play is a wonderful discourse on love.

noun

A long or elaborate essay or discussion on a particular subject.

Usage examples:

Nothing can kill a radio show quicker than a disquisition on intertextual analysis

noun

A long and detailed explanation of a particular subject

noun

A long essay on a particular subject, especially one written for a university degree or diploma.

Usage examples:

A dissertation on the novels of the brontë sisters

noun

A long piece of writing on a particular subject, esp. one that is done for a ph.d. (= high university degree)

noun

A vigorous or determined attempt.

Usage examples:

in an effort to save money, i have committed to only buying items that i truly need

noun

Physical or mental activity needed to achieve something, or an attempt to do something

Usage examples:

[ c ] they met again in an effort to end the strike and get people back to work., [ u ] it took yea…

noun

A serious attempt to do something

Usage examples:

An effort to do sth this is part of an ongoing effort to develop the asian debt market., the guidel…

verb

Try hard to do or achieve something.

Usage examples:

He is endeavouring to help the third world

noun

An attempt to achieve a goal.

Usage examples:

An endeavour to reduce serious injury

verb

To try to do something

Usage examples:

Engineers are endeavouring to locate the source of the problem., in spite of our best endeavours, i…

noun

A scientific procedure undertaken to make a discovery, test a hypothesis, or demonstrate a known fact.

Usage examples:

A laboratory which carried out experiments on pigs

verb

Perform a scientific procedure, especially in a laboratory, to determine something.

Usage examples:

Experimenting on animals causes suffering

verb

The act of conducting a controlled test or investigation

noun

A comprehensive description and explanation of an idea or theory.

Usage examples:

A systematic exposition of the idea of biodiversity

noun

A statement that explains something clearly

Usage examples:

The san francisco exposition

noun

A show in which industrial goods, works of art, etc. are shown to the public

Usage examples:

A machinery and equipment exposition

verb

Move from one place to another; travel.

Usage examples:

He went out to the shops

noun

An attempt or trial at something.

Usage examples:

Have a go at answering the questions yourself

adjective

Functioning properly.

Usage examples:

All systems go

noun

The person who leads or commands a group, organization, or country.

Usage examples:

The leader of a protest group

noun

A person who manages or controls other people, esp. because of his or her ability or position

Usage examples:

A business/financial/political leader, her company is a leader in the women’s clothing industry.

noun

A company, product, etc. that has higher sales than its competitors

Usage examples:

The brand is market leader in france, where it has a 49% market share., union leaders said they exp…

noun

A detailed written study of a single specialized subject or an aspect of it.

Usage examples:

They are publishing a series of monographs on music in late medieval and renaissance cities

verb

Write a monograph on; treat in a monograph.

Usage examples:

Meissner first monographed the plant in 1826

noun

A long article or a short book on a particular subject

Usage examples:

A monograph on beethoven's symphonies

noun

Material manufactured in thin sheets from the pulp of wood or other fibrous substances, used for writing, drawing, or printing on, or as wrapping material.

Usage examples:

A sheet of paper

verb

Apply wallpaper to (a wall or room).

Usage examples:

The walls were papered in a regency stripe

noun

A thin, flat material made from crushed wood or cloth used esp. for writing and printing on and in packaging

Usage examples:

[ u ] a piece/sheet of paper, [ u ] a paper bag/towel, [ u ] paper cups/napkins/plates, let's put s…

verb

Attempt to find (something).

Usage examples:

They came here to seek shelter from biting winter winds

phrasal verb

Begin a journey.

Usage examples:

We set out from new york on friday for egypt

phrasal verb

Arrange or display something in a particular order or position.

Usage examples:

They had a picnic by the river where there was a jetty and rustic tables and chairs set out

phrasal verb

To start a journey

Usage examples:

What time will we have to set off for grandma's house tomorrow?, jenny set off down the road on her…

noun

The firing of a gun or cannon.

Usage examples:

Mulder killed him with a single shot

adjective

Past and past participle of shoot.

noun

A bill or one's share of it, especially in a pub or bar.

Usage examples:

He had paid her shot

verb

Thrust a knife or other pointed weapon into (someone) so as to wound or kill.

Usage examples:

He stabbed her in the stomach

noun

A thrust with a knife or other pointed weapon.

Usage examples:

Multiple stab wounds

verb

To injure someone using a sharp, pointed object

Usage examples:

He was stabbed with a fork., he’s recovering from stab wounds., cheri felt a sudden stab of guilt.,…

verb

Make great efforts to achieve or obtain something.

Usage examples:

National movements were striving for independence

verb

To try hard to do something or make something happen, esp. for a long time or against difficulties

Usage examples:

[ + to infinitive ] neither jefferson nor madison was a pacifist, though both strove to keep americ…

noun

The devotion of time and attention to gaining knowledge of an academic subject, especially by means of books.

Usage examples:

The study of english

verb

Devote time and attention to gaining knowledge of (an academic subject), especially by means of books.

Usage examples:

I studied classics at college

verb

Applying the mind to learning and understanding a subject

noun

A book or other written or printed work, regarded in terms of its content rather than its physical form.

Usage examples:

A text which explores pain and grief

verb

Send (someone) a text message.

Usage examples:

If she was going to go she would have texted us

noun

A statement or theory that is put forward as a premise to be maintained or proved.

Usage examples:

His central thesis is that psychological life is not part of the material world

noun

A piece of writing involving original study of a subject, esp. for a college or university degree

Usage examples:

A master’s thesis, his thesis was that world war i could have been avoided.

noun

An area of land, typically a large one.

Usage examples:

Large tracts of natural forest

noun

A short treatise in pamphlet form, typically on a religious subject.

Usage examples:

I think we all have come across religious tracts in our lives - little pamphlets that are often han…

noun

(in the roman catholic church) an anthem of scriptural verses formerly replacing the alleluia in certain penitential and requiem masses.

Usage examples:

Uses of this format, known as responsorial psalmody, include the prokeimenon and alleluiarion of th…

noun

A written work dealing formally and systematically with a subject.

Usage examples:

His treatise on scottish political theory

noun

A formal piece of writing that deals with a particular subject

Usage examples:

A medical treatise

noun

A formal examination of evidence by a judge, typically before a jury, in order to decide guilt in a case of criminal or civil proceedings.

Usage examples:

The newspaper accounts of the trial

verb

Test (something, especially a new product) to assess its suitability or performance.

Usage examples:

Teachers all over the uk are trialling the materials

noun

The examination in a court of law of the facts of a case to decide whether a person is guilty of a crime or responsible for an injury to another person

Usage examples:

[ c ] a criminal/civil trial, [ u ] the case will soon go to trial (= begin)., [ u ] she must still…

verb

Make an attempt or effort to do something.

Usage examples:

He tried to regain his breath

noun

An effort to accomplish something; an attempt.

Usage examples:

He got his membership card on his third try

abbreviation

Turkish lira (or lire).

noun

A formal pledge or promise to do something.

Usage examples:

I give an undertaking that we shall proceed with the legislation

noun

The action of catching up with and passing another vehicle while travelling on the inside.

Usage examples:

The highway code discourages undertaking on motorways

verb

Commit oneself to and begin (an enterprise or responsibility); take on.

Usage examples:

A firm of builders undertook the construction work

noun

A risky or daring journey or undertaking.

Usage examples:

Pioneering ventures into little-known waters

verb

Undertake a risky or daring journey or course of action.

Usage examples:

She ventured out into the blizzard

noun

An activity or plan of action, often in business, that involves risk or uncertainty

Usage examples:

His most recent business venture ended in bankruptcy., [ i always + adv/prep ] he wanted to venture…

verb

Strike forcefully with a sharp blow.

Usage examples:

His attacker whacked him on the head

noun

A sharp or resounding blow.

Usage examples:

With a few whacks and some loud whistles, they drove the animals away

verb

The act of hitting vigorously