- A topic sentence.
- The main arguments. They are not necessary for your outline, but thinking about them now will save you lots of time later.
- A transition sentence. These are written in your expository essay and indicated in the outline to make your essay smooth and coherent.
- Paragraph #2
- A topic sentence. Mind that topic sentences are not connected with each other. They can in no way result from each other either. These are independent statements contributing to exploring the subject matter of your expository essay.
- The main arguments.
- A transition sentence.
- Paragraph #3
- A topic sentence.
- The main arguments.
- You can define expository essay and know what is expected from you
Just like any other type of academic writing, these essays require reliable sources. Don't use any free encyclopedias, blogs, and forums. They are only allowed in the very first stages of your research when you are trying to understand what your topic is about and how you can present it. Besides, you can only use them for the insight into the subject matter, and you can't cite them, even if you could imagine what an impression it would make on your teacher! If a student uses someone's superficial judgments (which are, in most cases, contained in blogs and, sometimes, even in Wiki) to create something ‘unprejudiced,' he or she hardly understands the expository essay definition and its aims.
Although the outline is an enormous part of your work, it is not everything. What you’ve got up to this moment is:
Outline Your Expository Essay
No matter what your topic is, your expository essay outline will include the following parts:
- Define expository essay. The first thing you have to pay attention to when you are assigned to write an such an essay is to answer the question ‘What is an expository essay?' Unlike many other types of academic papers, there is nothing tricky about the definition here: this is an essay that explains the object or phenomenon under consideration. In such an essay, you are to describe something without being metaphoric. None of the reader's senses should be involved when he or she reads your essay. The expository essay definition may be complemented with some features. In most cases, this is a five-paragraph paper. It is quite convenient because the introduction and conclusion that are very concise don't allow you to give a lot of unnecessary details.
- Find out what citation style to use. Before you proceed to write, make sure you understand the format in which you are to submit your essay, whether it is APA, MLA, Harvard or any other style.
- Make sure you understand your topic. An essay has to be clear and unbiased. So, you should understand every single word in your topic. Usually, it is not enough to google the term you don’t know. Its essence may lie in the etymology of the word. Consult trusted dictionaries. Turn to your teacher or ask a fellow student to help you.
There are no images in this kind of essays. Even if you have to explain economic and social reasons for famine in an African nation, you can't make your paper more vivid by picturing the everyday life of starving people. If you have to write about global warming, never make predictions about what awaits the humankind. The history of your country described in your essay can't be enriched with the pictures of your grandfathers' great deeds. The ultimate goal of these essays as a high-school and college assignment is to teach you to present the information as it is and in an unemotional manner, for lack of a better word. So, you will never find the inspiration in novels and writers' experience, which are great for other essay types, by the way. To understand how to write an expository essay, read research articles from the credible scientific journals. You can also find the best expository essay examples in your library. Searching online is not prohibited either. But, please, mind that some of them are only ‘the best' because website admins claim so.
- Short forms and colloquial language
In school and university, you might have to write expository essays as in-class exercises, exam questions, or coursework assignments.
“Expository” means “intended to explain or describe something.” An expository essay provides a clear, focused explanation of a particular topic, process, or set of ideas. It doesn’t set out to prove a point, just to give a balanced view of its subject matter.
Expository essays are usually short assignments intended to test your composition skills or your understanding of a subject. They tend to involve less research and original arguments than argumentative essays.
It’s important to make sure each paragraph covers its own clearly defined topic, introduced with a topic sentence. Different topics (all related to the overall subject matter of the essay) should be presented in a logical order, with clear transitions between paragraphs.
Table of contents
Hover over different parts of the example paragraph below to see how a body paragraph is constructed.
The body of your essay is where you cover your topic in depth. It often consists of three paragraphs, but may be more for a longer essay. This is where you present the details of the process, idea or topic you’re explaining.
Sometimes you might not be told explicitly to write an expository essay. Look out for prompts containing keywords like “explain” and “define.” An expository essay is usually the right response to these prompts.
There are several text structures you can use to write an expository essay and present your arguments. The block structure and the chain structure are the two most common types. The block method implies that you discuss one subject at first, and then you move on to another subject in a separate paragraph. For example, such a structure of a problem and solution essay may be illustrated in the following way:В
As with any other piece of writing, an expository essay should start with the introductory paragraph. Keep it short (3-5 sentences) but informative. In the first sentence, try to present the problem to the readers in an interesting way. This would be your hook. You should then write general information about the topic, mention why this issue is relevant, and outline the context in which you plan to discuss the problem. This part must be engaging and compelling for the audience to become interested in your piece. Keep in mind that the introduction lays the foundation for the further development of your argument.В
Once you have figured out the type and structure of an expository essay you are going to write, you can move on to the next steps.В
As you can see, writing an expository essay is rather straightforward when you are well-prepared. You should know the purpose of your work and choose the right essay type. When you are sure about the topic, you can research it and express creativity when selecting appropriate evidence for your claims. With the proper planning and adherence to the instructions, you can easily write a successful essay and get a good grade.В
Definition essays
Students will typically encounter many different types of expository essay prompts throughout their school careers—from primary school to high school to the college/university level. In general, these prompts help students to get started writing an expository essay, and they may be inspirational in nature. They have a more focused purpose, too, requiring students to research and explain a specific topic to meet an educational objective.
An expository essay is a piece of writing that involves exploring a particular idea or issue, researching the existing evidence, and presenting a coherent and to-the-point argument. A writer should define concepts, exemplify the ideas, compare and contrast related phenomena, or provide cause-effect reasoning to reach the desired result.В В
A problem and solution expository essay raises a relevant issue and analyzes it from different points of view. Having presented the problem, you need to develop a possible solution. For example, you can discuss:
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Writing expository essays is a great practice in critical thinking. Not only will you learn important research skills, but you will also be able to gather evidence in support of your claims.
A good way of writing this type of essay is to pick themes around which to make your comparisons. For example, in comparing two cities for livability, you may want to compare populations, the quality of available schools, accessibility and convenience, or pollution and stress levels, among other factors.
If you are given free rein to choose your topic, use this time to brainstorm possible ideas and choose one that you are genuinely interested in. This will make the process of researching and writing more engaging for you.
Writing Expository Essays
Expository essays can come in many different forms, depending on the goal of the writer: do you intend to explain something, or to show how one thing is better than another? Are you tasked with explaining how something works or how to make something?
But even in the workforce, having advanced research and reporting skills can be a significant advantage, since your supervisor may ask you to write up reports or present your research on a given topic.
Different kinds of essays require different kinds of content. To review, the most common types of essays include:
This type of expository essay is meant to describe a place, an experience, or a concept by appealing to the senses. The topic might be anything from a concrete object like an animal, city, or tree, or it can also be an abstract idea, such as relationships, love, or freedom.
- Opening Sentence
- Introduction Content – Background
- Thesis Statement
As with introductions so there are many ways to finish you essay. While you are writing the conclusion make sure that the statements logically derive from the ideas you have presented and developed throughout your writing.
Remember that you are limited only by your imagination. Focus on several options and then pick the one that more appropriate for your topic and purpose of writing.
In order to present an idea clearly you often have to do a lot of telling in expository writing. You need to state things exactly and directly. Make sure that your reader is understands what you intend to say. To illustrate those telling statements you may provide examples that show the reader what you mean.
Writing Your Conclusion
The introduction to an expository essay focuses the reader to the writer’s purpose as well as indicates something about what the reader can expect to find in the remainder of the essay. Most introductions contain a thesis statement that announces the main point of the writer’s intention. Although some authors may choose to let the reader conclude what their thesis is. And so they may place the thesis statement at the end of the essay rather than at the beginning. There are many ways to write an introduction. Some of them are followed:
The typical structure for an expository essay is the traditional five-paragraph essay. This includes an introduction, a conclusion, and three paragraphs for the body. This is the basic essay structure. Mostly the body paragraphs are limited to one subtopic each. Also in the expository writing the number of paragraphs may vary according to context. It does not matter how long your essay is. What is really important that the introduction includes your thesis statement and that an essay is based on facts rather than your opinion. And keep in mind to connect your paragraphs with transitions, as it is in all good writing.
Once you have your thesis settled and your method of writing decided, establish an outline for it. Give it an introduction, a discussion and exposition, and conclusion. Finish your work by demonstrating how your thesis has been proven through the facts presented. And after that, you just move forward to fill your outline with the content, arranging it in a proper structure.
Once you made your decision about your introductions go back to your outline and see if the main points and the specific examples will logically follow from your introduction. You may want to rearrange the main point in the order that will be most clear and logical to the reader. Usually the introductions indicate the structure of the essay’s body.