A definition essay will share your special understanding about some idea or thing. Sometimes a definition will prove to be a small but important part of an essay; sometimes a definition will be the sole work of an entire essay. When it's the major mode of an essay, there are several points to remember.
First, don't rely on that old cliché of the dictionary or encyclopedia definition. Even if your intent is to show how inadequate or wrong-headed the dictionary might be, this device has been used far too often to be effective. The point of your essay is to provide your reader with a new way of looking at things — your way, not Noah Webster's or Dictionary.com's.
One way of defining something is to say what it is not. If you're defining the idea of "home," you could begin by suggesting that the old saying "There's no place like home" is silly because there are, in fact, many places like home — or you could insist that home is really not a place at all. The opportunity to define is an opportunity to exercise your poetic imagination, to show how most people's sense of something is faulty or inadequate and that there is a better understanding (yours!) to consider.
In selecting a topic to define, look for something that you can define within your own experience and can also use resources from classes. If you try to define something that is beyond the comprehension of your paper or your own experience, the task will become overwhelming and get tied down in details or abstractions. If you are going to define what seems like a simple or abstract term, try to qualify it. There doesn't appear to be much point in defining a student, for example, but defining what we mean by a good student could be interesting. Push that definition to the limit to make a special point. A good student is not necessarily one that earns good grades or even one that does his or her best; a good student is one that makes the teacher feel like a good teacher. Or try defining a good teacher, a good parent, a good doctor, a good lover. In any case, if you are going to define something that everyone else has some idea about, you will need to shed fresh, even surprising light upon your subject.
A definition can be developed in a number of ways. It can begin with a short history of the term, or it could begin with examples of the term in various contexts- famous or relatively ordinary. The key to developing a definition within an essay is to use various modes within the essay itself. While the introduction paragraph should show the reader that the essay is going to take a term or phrase and establish its definition, the body paragraphs and the center of the argument can be developed through narration, compare and contrast, cause and effect, classification or any other rhetorical mode or strategy. The essay, by its conclusion, should have shown the reader what the term (or phrase) IS and what it ISN'T.
Some important rhetorical points about defining things:
First, don't rely on that old cliché of the dictionary or encyclopedia definition. Even if your intent is to show how inadequate or wrong-headed the dictionary might be, this device has been used far too often to be effective. The point of your essay is to provide your reader with a new way of looking at things — your way, not Noah Webster's or Dictionary.com's.
One way of defining something is to say what it is not. If you're defining the idea of "home," you could begin by suggesting that the old saying "There's no place like home" is silly because there are, in fact, many places like home — or you could insist that home is really not a place at all. The opportunity to define is an opportunity to exercise your poetic imagination, to show how most people's sense of something is faulty or inadequate and that there is a better understanding (yours!) to consider.
In selecting a topic to define, look for something that you can define within your own experience and can also use resources from classes. If you try to define something that is beyond the comprehension of your paper or your own experience, the task will become overwhelming and get tied down in details or abstractions. If you are going to define what seems like a simple or abstract term, try to qualify it. There doesn't appear to be much point in defining a student, for example, but defining what we mean by a good student could be interesting. Push that definition to the limit to make a special point. A good student is not necessarily one that earns good grades or even one that does his or her best; a good student is one that makes the teacher feel like a good teacher. Or try defining a good teacher, a good parent, a good doctor, a good lover. In any case, if you are going to define something that everyone else has some idea about, you will need to shed fresh, even surprising light upon your subject.
A definition can be developed in a number of ways. It can begin with a short history of the term, or it could begin with examples of the term in various contexts- famous or relatively ordinary. The key to developing a definition within an essay is to use various modes within the essay itself. While the introduction paragraph should show the reader that the essay is going to take a term or phrase and establish its definition, the body paragraphs and the center of the argument can be developed through narration, compare and contrast, cause and effect, classification or any other rhetorical mode or strategy. The essay, by its conclusion, should have shown the reader what the term (or phrase) IS and what it ISN'T.
Some important rhetorical points about defining things:
- Avoid using the phrases "is where" and "is when" in your definition.
- Avoid circular definitions- repeating the defined term within the definition itself.
- Avoid using too narrow of a definition, one that will limit the scope of your essay.
Thinking Maps
| circle_thinking_map.pdf |
| bubble_thinking_map.pdf |
| Sample Thinking Map & Essay |
Advice & Tips on How To Write a Definition Essay
Overview & How To- A college site that provides an easy-to-read outline and how-to.
| Definition Essay Outline & How-To #1 |
| Definition Essay Outline & How-To #2 |
| Definition Essay Outline & How-To #3 |
Professional Exemplars
Exemplars by LHS Learners
| Level 3 Definition Essay on "Colortura" |
