essay

essay — noun

1. a written text about a particular subject, usually one that a student prepares f

1.nounB1
Definition

a written text about a particular subject, usually one that a student prepares for a school or university course to show their knowledge and understanding

Example

Asher wrote a five-page essay on the French Revolution for his history class.

essay on + topic to show subject

The teacher returned our graded essays with helpful notes in red ink.

essay as graded schoolwork

Common collocations
  • write an essay
  • essay on
  • essay about
  • submit an essay
  • grade an essay
Synonyms
  • paper

    often shorter or more informal; mainly used in US academic settings

  • composition

    old-fashioned; now mostly used for language-class writing exercises

  • article

    published in a newspaper, magazine, or journal, not typically a student assignment

Grammar Patterns

essay + on/about + topic

Usage Note

The topic of an essay is typically introduced by the prepositions 'on' or 'about'. In school contexts, this noun frequently pairs with 'write', 'submit', 'hand in', 'grade', or 'mark'.

Common Mistakes

I wrote an essay to my girlfriend.
I wrote a letter to my girlfriend.
An essay is an academic or formal written work on a subject, not a personal message.

2. an act of trying to do something, especially something that tests one's skill or

2.nounC1
Definition

an act of trying to do something, especially something that tests one's skill or that may not succeed

Example

Layla made her first essay at writing a novel during the summer holidays.

collocation: first essay at

The young painter's early essay in watercolours showed real promise and originality.

collocation: early essay in [medium]

Common collocations
  • first essay at
  • early essay in
  • make an essay
Synonyms
  • attempt

    the standard neutral word at every register; 'essay' is more literary

  • try

    informal and conversational; much more common than 'essay' in everyday speech

Grammar Patterns

essay + at/in

Usage Note

A formal or literary use, almost always singular. Commonly paired with possessive determiners ('his first essay at...') and the verb 'make'. In modern everyday English, 'attempt' or 'try' are far more common.

Common Mistakes

She made an essay to fix her phone.
She made an attempt to fix her phone.
The noun 'essay' meaning 'attempt' is very formal and literary; in normal speech, use 'attempt' or 'try'.

essay — verb

Word family

  • essayist
    nounC1

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

All four words name types of written work, but each has a different scope and context. 'Paper' is common in US academic settings and can range from a short class assignment to a published research document; it is often shorter and less formal than an essay. 'Composition' sounds old-fashioned and is mainly used for writing exercises in language classes. 'Article' refers to a published piece in a newspaper, magazine, or academic journal — not a student's work. 'Thesis' is the longest and most formal: a substantial research paper written for a university degree, typically tens of thousands of words. For comparison: a student might write a short paper on a poem, a five-page essay on the causes of a war, a composition to practise grammar, or a thesis on a historical figure after years of research.

paper ↗composition ↗article ↗thesis ↗

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

The word 'essay' entered English in the late 16th century from French 'essai', meaning a trial or test. The French word came from Latin 'exagium', which referred to the act of weighing or balancing — the idea being that an essay weighs up different sides of a subject. The French writer Michel de Montaigne famously published a collection of short personal writings under the title 'Essais' in 1580, and from that point the word shifted from meaning 'attempt' to meaning 'a short written composition on a particular topic'.