epilogue

[ ep-uh-lawg, -log ]
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noun
  1. a usually short section appended to the conclusion of a book or film:The novel ends rather grimly, but the epilogue reveals that most of the characters go on to find fulfillment.: Compare prologue (def. 1).

  2. a later event that illuminates or reinforces the significance of an earlier set of events: The sad life of Tasso, the last great poet of the Italian Renaissance, was a fitting epilogue to the age, whose genius also declined into decadence.

  1. a speech, usually in verse, delivered by one of the actors after the conclusion of a play.: Compare prologue (def. 2).

  2. the actor who delivers a play’s epilogue.: Compare prologue (def. 3).

Origin of epilogue

1
First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English epiloge, from Latin epilogus, from Greek epílogos “conclusion of a speech,” equivalent to epi- epi- + lógos “word”
  • Rarely ep·i·log .

Words Nearby epilogue

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How to use epilogue in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for epilogue

epilogue

/ (ˈɛpɪˌlɒɡ) /


noun
    • a speech, usually in verse, addressed to the audience by an actor at the end of a play

    • the actor speaking this

  1. a short postscript to any literary work, such as a brief description of the fates of the characters in a novel

  1. British (esp formerly) the concluding programme of the day on a radio or television station, often having a religious content

Origin of epilogue

1
C15: from Latin epilogus, from Greek epilogos, from logos word, speech

Derived forms of epilogue

  • epilogist (ɪˈpɪlədʒɪst), noun

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