essays 1 of 2

noun

plural of essay
1
as in articles
a short piece of writing typically expressing a point of view school essays on what it means to be a patriot

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2
as in attempts
an effort to do or accomplish something my first essay at baking a cake did not go well

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3
as in tests
a procedure or operation carried out to resolve an uncertainty a little homemade essay to determine the easiest way to strip the paint from the bookcase

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essays

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of essay
as in tries
to make an effort to do he had been in gymnastics for some time before he even considered essaying that move

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of essays
Noun
This excellent volume contains a series of concise and authoritative essays on key aspects of the Ghetto’s early history, written by leading experts in the field. — Literary Hub, 16 Oct. 2026 High-profile essays like hers are reframing lobular carcinoma from clinical footnote to mainstream concern, and that reframing tends to drive demand for supplemental screening. — Samantha Agate, Kansas City Star, 14 Oct. 2026 Her essays appear in Slate, The Guardian, Vogue, New York Magazine, CNN, Rolling Stone, The Washington Post, Elle, Marie Claire and other outlets. — Christina Wyman, CNBC, 14 Oct. 2026 Two were asked to write reflection essays as part of their punishments. — ABC News, 14 Oct. 2026 John Muir, sometimes called the father of the national parks, carried Emerson’s essays in his pack. — M. R. O’Connor, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026 Fifty years ago, The Boston Evening Globe published a pair of essays written by two young men graduating from college. — David Shribman, Christian Science Monitor, 10 Oct. 2026 The loss spread like shock waves, resulting in thousands of comments across social media and online forums, as well as multiple essays from fans young and old. — Stephanie Breijo, Los Angeles Times, 8 Oct. 2026 The other two students were required to attend training, avoid contact with Jane Doe and write reflection essays. — Kaitlyn M. Sims, The Conversation, 8 Oct. 2026
Verb
In the film, Bajpayee plays the police officer while Jim Sarbh essays the role of the killer who goes by the fictional name Carl Bhojraj. — Sweta Kaushal, Forbes.com, 17 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for essays
  1. articles
  2. attempts
  3. tests
  4. tries
  5. goes
  6. experiments
  7. strives
  8. endeavors
Noun
  • Andries’ articles and reviews helped elevate Steppenwolf’s profile considerably in the years before the theater company relocated to Chicago in 1980 and eventually became world-renowned, Delacoma said.
    — Bob Goldsborough, Chicago Tribune, 22 Oct. 2026
  • The programming incorporates science through chat sessions with viewers three times a week, as well as a podcast and online articles detailing the dogs' development.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of articles
Noun
  • Last weekend in Highland, Michigan, Rogers dismissed El-Sayed's attempts to whittle away at his GOP base of support.
    — Aaron Navarro, CBS News, 16 Oct. 2026
  • Proposition 132 attempts to address these concerns by stiffening legal penalties.
    — Joshua Barocas, The Conversation, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of attempts
Noun
  • For all its tests, the company builds realistic simulated environments, red teams these environments itself and with third parties to see whether they can be escaped, and monitors what agents do.
    — Andrew Nusca, Fortune, 21 Oct. 2026
  • Now, students qualify for a lottery according to their performance on standardized tests.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 21 Oct. 2026
Definition of tests
Verb
  • But none of that martial-arts mayhem is as compelling as the battle being waged behind the scenes as director Kitao Sakurai tries to insert his irreverent, ironic approach into a property resistant to that kind of impish goofing around.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 16 Oct. 2026
  • In the Strait of Hormuz, at least nine tankers and cargo ships have come under attack since Sunday as Iran tries to choke off oil exports through the waterway.
    — Spencer Kimball, CNBC, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of tries
Noun
  • As far as co-op puzzle-solving goes, Orbitals doesn’t reinvent the wheel.
    — Andrew Webster, The Verge, 15 Oct. 2026
  • The first phase of the railway that the Colorado Connector (CoCo) will make trips on goes from Denver up to Boulder, on to Fort Collins.
    — Chierstin Roth, CBS News, 14 July 2026
Definition of goes
Noun
  • Robots learn from experiments A separate Google project tested whether agents could improve DNA aptamers, short molecules that fold into shapes capable of attaching to specific proteins.
    — Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 16 Oct. 2026
  • King Princess, ushered in a new era for her experiments in sonically fluid sapphic pop.
    — The New Yorker, New Yorker, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of experiments
Verb
  • In so doing, the tradition could achieve for ASL what the word of the year strives to achieve for English.
    — New York Times, New York Times, 22 Oct. 2026
  • Said soup is being attended to by at least four cooks, as Hal (with helpful coaching by an off-camera Kate) strives to explain himself to Grace back at the embassy, and then the two of them work to get Eidra on-side.
    — Sophie Brookover, Vulture, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of strives
Noun
  • Rice is known for betting on quality in both his film and TV endeavors.
    — Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 15 Oct. 2026
  • CruiseCup brought in $100,000 that month, roughly 60% more than Satterlee had ever brought in monthly from his previous entrepreneurial endeavors, the 19-year-old says.
    — Megan Sauer Valentina Duarte, CNBC, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of endeavors

Browse Nearby Words

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essays
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Cite this Entry

“Essays.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/essays. Accessed 24 Oct. 2026.

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