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exordium

American  
[ig-zawr-dee-uhm, ik-sawr-] / ɪgˈzɔr di əm, ɪkˈsɔr- /

noun

plural

exordiums, exordia

  1. the beginning of anything.

  2. the introductory part of an oration, treatise, etc.

exordium British  
/ ɛkˈsɔːdɪəm /

noun

  1. an introductory part or beginning, esp of an oration or discourse

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • exordial adjective

Etymology

Origin of exordium

1525–35; < Latin exōrdium, equivalent to ex- ex- 1 + ōrd ( īrī ) to begin + -ium -ium

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.