When writing a university essay one of the first things you should do is define the key terms used in your essay. If you are writing a dissertation or thesis this is normally done during the literature review. This is the first step in introducing the topic to the reader and can indicate the critical stance your essay will take. So here is how to write an interesting and engaging uni essay definition.
Introducing the definition
“As this essay focuses on X, it’s important to firstly define the term”
“Several definitions of X are proposed within the literature”
“The term X can be defined as”
“Smith (2016) defines X as”
“The first person to define the concept of X was Smith (2000)”
It is best to offer two (or possibly even three definitions) of the topic especially if you have been asked to critically review or critically analyse the topic.
For the sake of this article let’s say we are writing an essay about email marketing.
Smith (2016) describes email marketing as “using email as part of a business’s marketing strategy”.
This definition is short and to the point. However, it is slightly older and does not go into a lot of detail. Therefore, you should look for a definition that is more recent and greater in detail.
More recently, Jones and Thompson (2021) offer a more comprehensive definition referring to email marketing as “using email to send a commercial message to customers to educate them about a product, service, business or promotion and keep them engaged with a brand”.
This is a better definition. It goes into a lot more detail and is more recent therefore is likely to be more relevant. By adding in the words “more recently” and “more comprehensive” we are critically reviewing the definition.
What if there are lots of definitions?
If you are writing about a subject that is popular or has been around for a while, there will be many definitions proposed by various authors. Some of these will be from several years ago and others will be more recent. Moreover, some definitions will be short and others will be more detailed.
“Several definitions of X have been proposed”
“The concept of X has evolved over the years with multiple definitions proposed”
“Multiple definitions can be found within the literature”
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What if the definitions are different?
When a topic has several definitions, it is no surprise that these will all differ. Academics will have drawn their own conclusions based on their own research and views so may describe things differently. For your essay, you should compare the different definitions before deciding which one you will base your essay on (and explain why).
“There are multiple definitions of X proposed within the literature”
“There is no widely accepted definition of X”
“When it comes to X there are differences of opinion”
Commenting on a definition
Once you have offered a definition you need to give your opinion of this definition. Remember, a definition will either be useful for your essay or perhaps not so useful. If the word limit allows you should aim to include several definitions before explaining which one you find most useful for your paper.
“This definition draws attention to”
“The definition offered by Smith (2020) highlights that”
“On the other hand, the definition proposed by Jones (2021) does not take into account”
The definitions and names used in this article are not real.
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