ESQUIRE
Es*quire", v. t. [imp. & p. p. Esquired; p. pr. & vb. n. Esquiring.]
Defn: To wait on as an esquire or attendant in public; to attend.
[Colloq.]
ESQUISSE
Es`quisse", n. Etym: [F. See Sketch.] (Fine Arts)
Defn: The first sketch of a picture or model of a statue.
-ESS -ess. Etym: [OF. -esse, LL. -issa, Gr.
Defn: A suffix used to form feminine nouns; as, actress, deaconess, songstress.
ESSAY Es"say, n.; pl. Essays. Etym: [F. essai, fr. L. exagium a weighing, weight, balance; ex out + agere to drive, do; cf. examen, exagmen, a means of weighing, a weighing, the tongue of a balance, exigere to drive out, examine, weigh, Gr. 'exa`gion a weight, 'exagia`zein to examine, 'exa`gein to drive out, export. See Agent, and cf. Exact, Examine, Assay.]
1. An effort made, or exertion of body or mind, for the performance of anything; a trial; attempt; as, to make an essay to benefit a friend. "The essay at organization." M. Arnold.
2. (Lit.)
Defn: A composition treating of any particular subject; — usually shorter and less methodical than a formal, finished treatise; as, an essay on the life and writings of Homer; an essay on fossils, or on commerce.