Excerpt
/ˈɛksɜːrpt/
Definitions
2 meaningsA short extract from a film, broadcast, piece of music, or written work.
/ˈɛksɜːrpt/
She read an excerpt from the novel to the class.
💡 Simply: Imagine you're reading a really long book, but your teacher only wants you to read a small part. That small part is an excerpt! It's like a sneak peek or a small sample.
👶 For kids: A little part of a bigger story or song.
More Examples
The documentary included an excerpt from an interview with the scientist.
I only watched an excerpt of the movie to avoid spoilers.
How It's Used
"The book included an excerpt from the author's earlier work."
"The news report featured an excerpt from the politician's speech."
To select and quote a passage from a book or other material.
/ɪɡˈzɜːrpt/
To take or select (a passage) from a book, film, or piece of music for quotation or mention.
The journalist excerpted the most compelling quotes from the interview.
💡 Simply: When you're writing a report and you copy a sentence or two from a book, you're basically excerpting it. You're taking a small part to use in your own work.
👶 For kids: To take a little part from something big.
More Examples
He excerpted the best parts of the poem for his presentation.
The website excerpted the main points of the article.
How It's Used
"The editor excerpted several chapters from the manuscript."
"The researcher excerpted relevant data from the study."
From Latin *excerptum*, past participle of *excerpere* 'to pick out, select', from *ex-* 'out' + *carpere* 'to pluck, gather'.
The word 'excerpt' has been used since the 16th century, originally referring to a passage selected from a book.
Memory tip
Think of 'extract' or 'extracts' – you take a portion out.
Word Origin
"to pick out, select"