Defining by Example

Sometimes a word can be defined by offering examples that are representative, or serve as a pattern, model, or prototype of the thing to be defined. For instance, in the following passage, Terrence McLaughlin defines dirt by giving several examples (note, also, the use of comparison)

Earth, in the garden, is a valuable support and nourishment for plants, and gardeners often run it through their fingers lovingly; earth on the carpet is dirt. A pile of dung, to the dung beetle, is food and shelter for a large family; a pile of dung, to the Public Health Inspector, is a Nuisance. Soup in a plate, before we eat it, is food; the traces that we leave on the plate imperceptibly become dirt. Lipstick on a girl's lips may make her boy-friend anxious to touch them with his own lips; lipstick on a cup will probably make him refuse to touch it. (McLaughlin 14)

One danger in using examples is that the examples may not be relevant; that is, there may be disagreement on how well the examples "fit" the term being defined. Another danger lies in the extent by which the example fits the term being defined, since the example may be "fuller" that is warranted (Barnet and Bedau 53).

Works Cited

Barnet, Sylvan and Hugo Bedau. Critical Thinking, Reading, and Writing: A Brief Guide to Argument. 3rd ed. Boston: Bedford St. Martins, 1999.

McLaughlin, Terence. "Dirt." Thinking in Writing. Ed. Donald McQuade and Robert Atwan. 2nd ed. New York: Knopf, 1983. 14-15.

ENGL1010 Composition I