Definition of epilogue
1 : a concluding section that rounds out the design of a literary work
2a : a speech often in verse addressed to the audience by an actor at the end of a play; also : the actor speaking such an epilogueb : the final scene of a play that comments on or summarizes the main action
3 : the concluding section of a musical composition : coda
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From its Greek roots, epilogue means basically "words attached (at the end)". An epilogue often somehow wraps up a story's action, as in the one for a famous Shakespeare play that ends, "For never was a story of more woe / Than this of Juliet and her Romeo". In nonfiction books, we now often use the term afterword instead of epilogue, just as we now generally use foreword instead of prologue. Movies also often have a kind of epilogue--maybe a scene after the exciting climax when the surviving lovers meet in a café to talk about their future. The epilogue of a musical composition, after all the drama is over, is called the coda (Italian for "tail").
Origin and Etymology of epilogue
Middle English epiloge, from Middle French epilogue, from Latin epilogus, from Greek epilogos, from epilegein to say in addition, from epi- + legein to say — more at legend
First Known Use: 15th century
Other Literature Terms
EPILOGUE Defined for English Language Learners
epilogue
playDefinition of epilogue for English Language Learners
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: a final section or speech after the main part of a book, play, or musical composition
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See words that rhyme with epilogue Spanish Central: Translation of epilogue Nglish: Translation of epilogue for Spanish speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about epilogue
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