Definition

In the essays below, you should know the subject thoroughly since the writers have composed extended definitions. You can learn to write a definition essay from these websites:

All writers in this collection speak for themselves—and themselves alone.

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Bad Dog

Writer Rachel Maizes recounts life with Chance, her often aggressive, mixed-breed dog.

Definition • Humans & Their Animals • First Person • Discussion Questions & Writing Prompts • Connect with Author


Catfish Culture: How MTV’s Reality Show Is Leaching into Pop Culture (and Reality)

Writer Libby Hill examines television, namely period dramas like The Americans and Masters of Sex, and concludes that the identities people assume in life are both true and false.

Definition • Identity • Mixed Person • Discussion Questions & Writing Prompts • Connect with Author


Crazy Cat Ladies

Kiri Blakeley, a contributor to Forbes magazine, defines the modern cat lady by exploring the connection women (and some men) have with cats.

Definition • Humans & Their Animals • Third Person • Discussion Questions & Writing Prompts • Connect with Author


Facebook: The New Meaning of "Friend"

Writer Val Brown shares her own take on how Facebook has redefined the word "friend."

Definition • Identity • First Person • Discussion Questions & Writing Prompts • Connect with Author


A Fiesta Fit for a Princess — for Those Willing to Pay

Los Angeles Times reporter Marisa Gerber describes how the traditional quinceanera has evolved over the past 40 years.

Definition • Times & Places • Third Person • Discussion Questions & Writing Prompts • Connect with Author


Gross Domestic Nonsense

Therapist and minister Wayne Muller seeks to define on a personal level what the economic concept of GDP is.

Definition • Modern Challenges • Mixed Person • Discussion Questions & Writing Prompts • Connect with Author


I'm a Cat Lady? Thank You

Stephanie Butnik, writing for the New York Times, tries to dispel the myth that cat people are crazy by defining the "new" cat owner.

Definition • Humans & Their Animals • First Person • Discussion Questions & Writing Prompts • Connect with Author


The Modern Kennel Conundrum

Jon Mooallem, a writer for the New York Times, investigates the "designer" dog fad which has created Labradoodles and puggles.

Definition • Humans & Their Animals • Mixed Person • Discussion Questions & Writing Prompts • Connect with Author


Shut up and Eat

Author John Lanchester explains how our idea of food and what "food" means has changed.

Definition • Identity • First Person • Discussion Questions & Writing Prompts • Connect with Author


Training for the End of the World as We Know It

Writing for the Atlantic, Jessica Leigh Hester investigates the world of preppers, those folks preparing for the end of the world.

Definition • Identity • Third Person • Discussion Questions & Writing Prompts • Connect with Author


Ultimate Frisbee’s Surprising Arrival as a Likely Olympic Sport

What is ultimate frisbee? In this article, author Charles Bethea explains the sport and why its players believe it belongs at the Olympics

Definition • Sport • Third Person • Discussion Questions & Writing Prompts • Connect with Author