essays

Noun

essay (plural essays)

1. A written composition of moderate length, exploring a particular issue or subject.
   • In his first book since the 2008 essay collection Natural Acts: A Sidelong View of Science and Nature, David Quammen looks at the natural world from yet another angle: the search for the next human pandemic, what epidemiologists call “the next big one.”2013 January, Katie L. Burke, “Ecological Dependency”, in American Scientist, volume 101, number 1, archived from the original on 09 Feb 2017, page 64
2. (obsolete) A test, experiment; an assay.
3. (archaic) An attempt.
   • My first essay at getting employment was fruitless; but after no small number of mortifying rebuffs from various parties to whom I applied for assistance, I was at last rewarded by a comparative success.1861, E. J. Guerin, Mountain Charley, page 16
4. A proposed design for a postage stamp or a banknote.

See all 6 meanings of essay