compendium

noun

com·​pen·​di·​um kəm-ˈpen-dē-əm 

plural compendiums or compendia kəm-ˈpen-dē-ə 

1

: a brief summary of a larger work or of a field of knowledge : abstract

a one-volume compendium of the multivolume original

2

a

: a list of a number of items

b

: collection, compilation

a compendium of folk tales

Synonyms of compendium

• compilation
• anthology

Examples of compendium in a Sentence

a one-volume compendium of information

He published a compendium of folk tales.

Recent Examples on the Web

Didier recommended Le Répertoire de la Cuisine, by Louis Saulnier, originally published in Paris in 1914, a compendium of more than 6,000 names and brief verbal recipes that sum up the state of fancy French cooking (now known as fancy Freedom cooking) 90 years ago. —Jeffrey Steingarten, Vogue, 5 Apr. 2026

The largest of these books, a twenty-five-foot-long, fifty-four-page compendium, provides a sweeping and decidedly asynchronous mapping of the artist’s interlocking body of work. —Katherine Rochester, Artforum, 1 Apr. 2026

On Wednesday the world-famous dining compendium inducted a handful of restaurants that will appear in the statewide guide, slated to be published later this year. —Stephanie Breijo, Los Angeles Times, 26 Mar. 2026

Plus, this year’s compendium contains some information that past editions have not featured — new information that helps explain the speed-up in the rate of global warming in recent years. —Andrew Freedman, CNN Money, 23 Mar. 2026

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Latin, "gain, profit, saving, short cut, abridgement, summary," from com- com- + pendere "to weigh, have a weight of, pay (out), estimate, consider" + -ium, suffix forming nouns from compound verbs — more at pendent

Note: Latin compendium would appear to have been formed from compendere, presumably "to weigh together," but the only evidence for such a verb is its citation by varro to account for the etymology of compendium.

First Known Use

1589, in the meaning defined at sense 1