Meaning & use
epigraph
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Meanings
nouncountable
A short quotation or sentence placed at the start of a book, chapter, or poem to suggest its main idea.
Grammar: Countable; use a/an or the, and it can be plural: an epigraph, the epigraph, several epigraphs.
Patterns
- an epigraph to something
- an epigraph from someone
- put an epigraph at the beginning of something
The novel opens with an epigraph from a nineteenth-century poem.
She chose an epigraph from her grandmother's diary for the first chapter.
Each section of the book begins with a short epigraph about memory.
nouncountableformal
Words carved or written on a building, statue, or monument.
Grammar: Countable and often used in the plural when referring to several inscriptions.
Patterns
- an epigraph on something
- bear an epigraph
The epigraph on the old town hall records the date of its rebuilding.
Visitors paused to read the epigraph carved into the stone base.
Word forms
| plural | epigraphs |
|---|
Common combinations
- open with an epigraph
- Her collection of essays opens with an epigraph from Virginia Woolf.
- choose an epigraph
- He chose an epigraph that perfectly captured the mood of the story.
- an epigraph from a poem
- The chapter heading includes an epigraph from a poem by Yeats.
- a famous epigraph
- That famous epigraph has been quoted in many later works.
Synonyms and how they differ
- quotation
- A general word for any quoted text; epigraph is more specific because it appears at the start of a work.
- motto
- A motto is a short phrase that expresses a principle and is often repeated; an epigraph is a quoted passage placed at the beginning.
- inscription
- Use inscription for words cut into stone or metal; epigraph can also mean this, but it is less common in everyday speech.
Word family
- epigraphy noun
- The study of inscriptions, especially ancient ones.
- epigrapher noun
- A person who studies or writes inscriptions.
- epigraphic adjective
- Relating to inscriptions or epigraphy.
Commonly confused: epigraph or epitaph? epigraph or epigram?
epigraph vs epitaph
An epitaph is a short text on a tombstone in memory of a dead person; an epigraph is a quotation at the beginning of a book or other work.
epigraph vs epigram
An epigram is a short, clever, and often amusing saying; an epigraph is a quotation used as an introduction.
Practice
The author placed a short quotation at the beginning of her novel to hint at its theme. What is this quotation called?
Choose one answer.
An epigraph is a quotation at the start of a book or chapter. An epitaph is on a tombstone, an epigram is a clever saying, and an inscription is carved on a surface.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “epigraph”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.