expository

expository

English

Etymology

    From exposit(ion) + -ory.

    Pronunciation

    • (US) IPA(key): /ɛkˈspɑzəˌtɔɹi/
    • (UK) IPA(key): /ɛkˈspɒzɪtəɹi/, /ɛkˈspɒzɪtɹi/, /ɪkˈ-/
      • Audio (Southern England):(file)

    Adjective

    expository (comparative more expository, superlative most expository)

    1. Serving to explain, explicate, or elucidate; expositive; of or relating to exposition.
      Synonym: expositorial
      Practicing expository writing will teach you to explain complex concepts clearly.
      • 2017 February 23, Katie Rife, “The Girl With All The Gifts tries to put a fresh spin on overripe zombie clichés”, in The Onion AV Club[1]:
        The zombie scenes are reminiscent of what you might see on a show like The Walking Dead, short bursts of extreme violence and gore punctuating expository dialogue scenes where the survivors try to figure out how they’re going to get from point A to point B.
      • 2022, Chuck Klosterman, The Nineties, New York: Penguin Press, →ISBN:
        The expository, nonmetaphorical lyrics to “Cop Killer” were dedicated to the Los Angeles Police Department: The narrator puts on black gloves and a ski mask, turns off the headlights of his car, and prepares to shoot himself some cops.

    Derived terms

    Translations