Introduction1. (n.) The act of introducing, or bringing to notice.
2. (n.) The act of formally making persons known to each other; a presentation or making known of one person to another by name; as, the introduction of one stranger to another.
3. (n.) That part of a book or discourse which introduces or leads the way to the main subject, or part; preliminary; matter; preface; proem; exordium.
4. (n.) A formal and elaborate preliminary treatise; specifically, a treatise introductory to other treatises, or to a course of study; a guide; as, an introduction to English literature.
Thesaurus Entries
Vorspiel, abecedarium, abecedary, access, acknowledgments, acquaintance, acquaintedness, act, admission, afterpiece, and arithmetic, aside, avant-propos, back, back matter, bastard title, bibliography, bit, breakthrough, catch line, catchword, chaser, close acquaintance, cloture, coinage, colophon, coming out, committee consideration, concert overture, contents, contents page, copyright page, curtain, curtain call, curtain raiser, debate, debut, dedication, deliberation, descant, discovery, divertimento, divertissement, division, dramatic overture, elementary education, elements, embarkation, embarkment, embedment, endleaf, endpaper, endsheet, entrance, entree, entry, epilogue, episode, errata, exode, exodus, exordium, expository scene, filibuster, filibustering, filing, finale, first appearance, first reading, first steps, floating, flotation, flyleaf, folio, fore edge, foreword, front matter, frontispiece, graft, grafting, half-title page, head, hoke act, hornbook, impaction, impactment, implantation, import, importation, importing, imprint, inaugural address, inauguration, income, incoming, index, induction, infiltration, infix, infixion, infusion, ingoing, ingress, ingression, initiation, injection, innovation, inoculation, input, inscription, insert, insertion, insinuation, installation, installment, intake, intercalation, interjection, interlineation, interlocution, interlude, intermezzo, intermission, interpenetration, interpolation, introgression, intromission, intrusion, invention, knockdown, launching, leaf, leakage, leap, logrolling, maiden speech, makeup, neologism, new phase, novelty, number, obiter dictum, opener, operatic overture, overture, page, parenthesis, penetration, percolation, perfusion, postulate, preamble, preface, prefix, prefixture, preliminaries, preliminary, prelude, premise, presentation, presupposition, primer, proem, prolegomena, prolegomenon, prolepsis, prologue, propaedeutic, protasis, reading, reception, recto, remark, reverso, roll call, routine, rudiments, running title, scene, second reading, seepage, shtick, side remark, signature, sketch, skit, song and dance, stand-up comedy act, steamroller methods, striptease, subtitle, table of contents, tabling, tail, talkathon, tessellation, text, third reading, title, title page, tossing-in, trim size, turn, type page, unveiling, vamp, verse, verso, voluntary, vote, writing