epitome

See also: epítome

English

WOTD – 19 September 2010

Etymology

From (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Middle French, from (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Latin epitome, epitoma, from (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Ancient Greek ἐπιτομή (epitomḗ, “an abridgment, also a surface-incision”), from ἐπιτέμνω (epitémnō, “I cut upon the surface, cut short, abridge”), from ἐπί (epí) + τέμνω (témnō, “to cut”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /əˈpɪt.ə.mi/, /ɪˈpɪt.ə.mi/

• Audio (US):

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• Audio (US):

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• Audio (AU):

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Noun

epitome (plural epitomes or epitomai)

1. The embodiment or encapsulation of a class of items.

   Synonyms: exemplar, model, type

2. A representative example.
3. The height; the best.

   Synonym: acme

4. A brief summary of a text.

   Synonym: synopsis

(Can we add an example for this sense?)

Usage notes

The sense ‘the height, the best’ is considered incorrect by some; instead, 'pinnacle' may be preferred.

Synonyms

• (an embodiment of): synopsis, exemplar
• (the best): greatest, quintessential,

poster child

• (a summary): abstract, synopsis

Antonyms

• antithesis

Derived terms

Derived terms

• epitomic
• epitomical

• epitomize
• epitomous

Related terms

• epitomator
• epitomist
• epitomizer

Translations

embodiment or encapsulation of

• Afrikaans: toonbeeld
• Albanian: mishërim (sq)
• Arabic: مَثَال m (maṯāl)
• Belarusian: ўвасабле́нне (ŭvasabljénnje)
• Bulgarian: въплъще́ние (bg) n (vǎplǎšténie)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 縮影／缩影 (zh) (suōyǐng), 缩影 (zh) (suōyǐng)

• Czech: ztělesnění
• Danish: indbegrebet
• Dutch: verwezenlijking (nl) f, belichaming (nl) f, personificatie (nl) f
• Estonian: epitoom
• Finnish: ruumiillistuma
• French: résumé (fr), épitomé (fr) m
• Galician: epítome
• German: Verkörperlichung f
• Greek: επιτομή (el) (epitomí)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Hebrew: תמצית (tamtsot)
• Icelandic: ímynd (is)
• Italian: epitome (it)
• Japanese: 縮図 (しゅくず, shukuzu)
• Norwegian: innbegrepet
• Persian: خلاصه (fa)
• Polish: ucieleśnienie n
• Portuguese: epítome (pt)
• Russian: воплоще́ние (ru) (voploščénije), олицетворе́ние (ru) n (olicetvorénije)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: епитом m, утјеловљење n, персонификација, оваплоћење n

  Roman: epitom m, utjelovljenje (sh) n, personifikacija (sh) f, ovaploćenje (sh) n

• Spanish: epítome (es)
• Swedish: sammandrag (sv), personifiering (sv) c, inbegrepp n, inkarnation (sv) c
• Turkish: özet (tr)
• Yiddish: יפּיטאַמי (ypitami)

representative example

• Finnish: ruumiillistuma, malliesimerkki
• French: personnification (fr) f, incarnation (fr) f
• Hungarian: típuspélda, megtestesülés (hu), megtestesítő, (in adjectival role) megtestesült (hu), (in adjectival role) két lábon járó
• Italian: personificazione (it) f, incarnazione (it) f
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Romanian: personificare (ro) f
• Russian: образец (ru) m (obrazec)
• Swedish: personifikation (sv)

the height; the best

• Dutch: toppunt (nl) n
• Italian: apice (it) m
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Russian: эталон (ru) m (etalon)

summary

• Bulgarian: резюме (bg) n (rezjume)
• Dutch: samenvatting (nl) f, synopsis (nl) f, uittreksel (nl) n, excerpt (nl) n
• Finnish: tiivistelmä (fi), abstrakti (fi), yhteenveto (fi)
• French: résumé (fr), abrégé (fr)
• German: Abriss (de) m
• Greek:

  Ancient Greek: ἐπιτομή f (epitomḗ)

• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Hungarian: összegzés (hu), összefoglalás (hu), kivonat (hu), foglalat (hu), lényeg (hu)
• Irish: gearrinsint f
• Italian: compendio (it) m, sommario (it) m, sunto (it) m, sinossi (it) f, epitome (it)
• Portuguese: epítome (pt)
• Russian: конспе́кт (ru) m (konspékt), кра́ткое изложе́ние n (krátkoje izložénije), резюме́ (ru) n (rezjumɛ́)
• Serbo-Croatian: sinopsis (sh), epitom
• Spanish: epítome (es), resumen (es), sinopsis (es)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Manx: ^{(please verify)} aagherrid m
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}

Further reading

• “epitome”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• “epitome”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.

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Italian

Noun

epitome f (plural epitomi)

1. epitome

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Latin

Alternative forms

• epitoma

Etymology

From Ancient Greek ἐπιτομή (epitomḗ), from ἐπιτέμνω (epitémnō), from ἐπί (epí) + τέμνω (témnō, “to cut”).

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): /eˈpi.to.meː/, [ɛˈpɪt̪ɔmeː]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /eˈpi.to.me/, [eˈpiːt̪ome]

Noun

epitomē f (genitive epitomēs); first declension

1. epitome, abridgement, synopsis

Declension

First-declension noun (Greek-type).

Case	Singular	Plural
Nominative	epitomē	epitomae
Genitive	epitomēs	epitomārum
Dative	epitomae	epitomīs
Accusative	epitomēn	epitomās
Ablative	epitomē	epitomīs
Vocative	epitomē	epitomae

Descendants

• English: epitome

References

• “epitome”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “epitome”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• epitome in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
• “epitome”, in Harry Thurston Peck, editor (1898), Harper's Dictionary of Classical Antiquities, New York: Harper & Brothers
• epitome in Ramminger, Johann (2016 July 16 (last accessed)) Neulateinische Wortliste: Ein Wörterbuch des Lateinischen von Petrarca bis 1700‎^[1], pre-publication website, 2005-2016

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Spanish

Verb

epitome

1. First-person singular (yo) present subjunctive form of epitomar.
2. Formal second-person singular (usted) present subjunctive form of epitomar.
3. Third-person singular (él, ella, also used with usted^?) present subjunctive form of epitomar.
4. Formal second-person singular (usted) imperative form of epitomar.