dissertation

[ dis-er-tey-shuhn ]

noun

1. a written essay, treatise, or thesis, especially one written by a candidate for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy.
2. any formal discourse in speech or writing.

dissertation

/ ˌdɪsəˈteɪʃən /

noun

1. a written thesis, often based on original research, usually required for a higher degree
2. a formal discourse

Derived Forms

• ˌdisserˈtational, adjective
• ˌdisserˈtationist, noun

Other Words From

• disser·tation·al adjective
• disser·tation·ist noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of dissertation¹

First recorded in 1605–15; from Latin dissertātiōn-, stem of dissertātiō, equivalent to dissert + -ation

Example Sentences

This included one example of a student trying to write a dissertation on their mobile phone.

From BBC

I’ll spare you the dissertation’s worth of reasons as to why Donald Trump cannot be elected president again, except to say: He and his backers will make this country, and this world, markedly worse in every single way.

From Slate

In his dissertation about how to position Democrats for long-lasting majority rule, the current Senate majority leader urged the adoption of policies that would purportedly strengthen the middle class, and in so doing cement a bond between them and the Democratic Party.

From Salon

Adam Cliff said he first got interested in the issue as a teenager, and wrote his university dissertation on it.

From BBC

Leo Rhee, a 54-year-old pastor from Chicago who is working on a doctoral dissertation about the reverse Korean American diaspora at Torch Trinity Graduate University in Seoul, recalled a Korean American friend who had gotten into legal trouble in the U.S. for dealing drugs before coming to Korea, where he was accepted by one of the SKY schools — South Korea’s equivalent of the Ivy League — and graduated with a business degree.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• essay
• monograph
• treatise