What is an excerpt?

An excerpt is best defined as a short extract from a larger work. This means it consists of a selected portion or passage taken from a book, article, poem, or any other comprehensive text. Excerpts are often used to highlight specific themes, ideas, or stylistic qualities of the original work without providing the entire context. For instance, a teacher might use an excerpt from a novel to illustrate a certain character's development or a particular writing style without requiring students to read the whole book.

When identifying an excerpt, it’s important to note that it does not encapsulate the entirety of the original work—it captures just enough to give insight into or spark interest in the broader text from which it is drawn. This is in contrast to a lengthy analysis, which withholds the original text, or a complete version of a story, which includes every detail of that work.