Examples
Worked examples
- Is an instance
A Lancet commentary by a senior researcher contextualising a study published in the same issue
Counter-examples
Looks similar, but isn't
- Not an instance
A peer-reviewed original research article is not a commentary
Editorial commentary
A commentary is a short scholarly publication that responds to, contextualises, or critiques other recently-published work, or addresses a current development in the field, presenting an argued perspective rather than original empirical findings. Commentaries are typically invited by the editor but may also be submitted unsolicited; they are peer-reviewed, sometimes more lightly than original research, and are citable outputs.
How this differs from a letter to the editor and a review article
A letter to the editor is specifically a direct response to one previously-published article in the same journal, usually shorter and more tightly focused than a commentary, and is conventionally published alongside a reply from the original authors — a commentary is not tied to that same reply-mechanic and can address a broader development rather than a single paper. A commentary also differs from a full review article in scope and intent: a review article aims for comprehensive coverage of a topic’s literature, while a commentary presents one argued perspective, often deliberately provocative, without attempting comprehensive coverage.
Example
An invited commentary published in the same issue as a major study, written by a senior researcher in the field to contextualise the study’s significance and limitations for readers.
Also known as
Editorial commentary · Perspective piece
Machine-readable encodings
Use in your systems
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vocab-identifier="https://casrai.org/dictionary/"
vocab-term="Commentary"
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"alternateName": [
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],
"license": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
"publisher": {
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},
"author": {
"@id": "https://casrai.org/#editorial-team"
},
"datePublished": "2026-05-21T02:05:04",
"dateModified": "2026-08-22T15:29:19",
"inLanguage": "en-GB",
"isAccessibleForFree": true
}
