dissertation

noun

dis·​ser·​ta·​tion ˌdi-sər-ˈtā-shən How to pronounce dissertation (audio)
: an extended usually written treatment of a subject
specifically : one submitted for a doctorate
wrote her dissertation on an obscure 16th-century poet
dissertational
ˌdi-sər-ˈtāsh-nəl How to pronounce dissertation (audio)
-ˈtā-shə-nᵊl
adjective

Examples of dissertation in a Sentence

He wrote his dissertation on an obscure 16th-century poet.
Recent Examples on the Web Indeed, Gorsuch’s dissertation advisor, the natural-law theorist John Finnis, was committed to this project. Noah Feldman, Twin Cities, 23 Feb. 2024 The dissertation examined how germ cells behaved in one animal. Quanta Magazine, 21 Feb. 2024 This was followed by a Jan. 1 report, also from The Washington Free Beacon, that detailed several more alleged plagiarisms found in articles that are sometimes more than 20 years old, as well as Gay’s 1997 dissertation. Luisa Beltran, Fortune, 3 Jan. 2024 At Brandeis, Lipstadt would write her dissertation on Louis Lipsky, an important American Zionist leader. Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 26 Feb. 2024 Within a year, Hoover had conducted sixty-three interviews, which, along with the records Cook had given her, provided much of the basis for her dissertation. Jay Caspian Kang, The New Yorker, 26 Feb. 2024 Kate Birkbeck is a PhD candidate at Yale University writing a dissertation about the international arms trade, federal policy and local armed groups across the American Empire between the Civil War and the First World War. TIME, 12 Feb. 2024 Rose is working on a postgraduate dissertation focusing on finding ways to save the world’s bee population. Murtada Elfadl, Variety, 27 Jan. 2024 The team includes Emily First, who completed the study as part of her doctoral dissertation at UMass Amherst; Markus Rabe, a former researcher at Google, where the study was conducted; and Talia Ringer, an assistant professor at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. IEEE Spectrum, 25 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'dissertation.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1651, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of dissertation was in 1651

Dictionary Entries Near dissertation

Cite this Entry

“Dissertation.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dissertation. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

dissertation

noun
dis·​ser·​ta·​tion ˌdis-ər-ˈtā-shən How to pronounce dissertation (audio)
: a long usually written treatment of a subject
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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