epigraph Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun a quotation at the beginning of some piece of writing
  2. noun an engraved inscription

WordNet

Ep"i*graph noun
Etymology
Gr. , fr. : cf. F. épigraphe. See Epigram.
Definitions
  1. Any inscription set upon a building; especially, one which has to do with the building itself, its founding or dedication.
  2. (Literature) A citation from some author, or a sentence framed for the purpose, placed at the beginning of a work or of its separate divisions; a motto.

Webster 1913