Definition Essay

English 1302

Professor Remollino

Essay 1: Definition

To begin the assignment, look at the following list of words. You will need to choose one of

them for your definition essay:

bravado trefoil nonagenarian raconteur

carcinogen fleur de lis malapropism vicissitude

narcissism hubris oxymoron talisman

caduceus hansom numismatics peccadillo

phlebotomist conestoga triskaidekaphobia augury

finial bandoleer polyglot cacophony

parsimony xenophobia adage neophyte

samovar kismet juju maelstrom

philatelist malediction legerdemain coulrophobia

termagant faux pas circumlocution curmudgeon

aspersion gourmand philanderer ornithologist

nepotism zeitgeist somnambulist gephyrophobia

Prompt

Part A. Go to Dictionary.com to complete this part of the assignment. Begin by looking up

your chosen word. Copy and paste the following information for the word:

1) The word

2) Its pronunciation

3) Its part of speech

4) Its word origin

5) All its definitions

6) Add the MLA 8 internal citation

Part B. Write an extended definition for the word using your skills of connotation. Write a two

full-page to three full pages definition of your chosen word. Don’t forget to give your writing

an original title. Your audience is your college English professor. You will turn in Parts A, B,

and C of your definition assignment with a page break between each page but all as one

document.

You may describe, narrate, and/or illustrate the term. You do not have to use the word in your

definition paragraph. In fact, the reader should be able to figure out which word you have

chosen based upon the details you have provided; however, this is not a guessing game. The

reader should not be clueless about what word is being defined.

Part C. Create an MLA-style Works Cited page using the following example as the correct

format:

"Arachnophobia". Dictionary.com Unabridged. Random House, Inc. 2018.

Dictionary.com. http://www.dictionary.com/browse/arachnophobia. Accessed 14

September 2018.