essayist

noun

es·​say·​ist ˈe-ˌsā-ist How to pronounce essayist (audio)
: a writer of essays

Examples of essayist in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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The 2025 honorees in fiction, Deana Carney and Walter Sam, provide us with stories from outside of the carceral state, while essayists Steven Perez and Luzalbert Hernandez offer up tales of life on the inside and the winding roads that lead to incarceration. Manuel Muñoz, Literary Hub, 11 Sep. 2025 In the latest issue of the magazine, the writer and essayist Leslie Jamison reports on the many negative health effects of perfectionism. Caroline Mimbs Nyce, New Yorker, 5 Aug. 2025 On this day in 1924: Novelist, essayist, playwright and activist James Baldwin was born in New York City. AZCentral.com, 2 Aug. 2025 Like the essayists in Life and The New York Times, the candidate recognized that the country needed more than policy prescriptions. Time, 23 July 2025 See All Example Sentences for essayist

Word History

First Known Use

1601, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of essayist was in 1601

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Cite this Entry

“Essayist.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/essayist. Accessed 18 Sep. 2025.

Kids Definition

essayist

noun
es·​say·​ist ˈes-ˌā-əst How to pronounce essayist (audio)
: a writer of essays

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