corpulent
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of corpulent
1350–1400; Middle English < Latin corpulentus, equivalent to corp ( us ) body + -ulentus -ulent
Explanation
Corpulent is a formal word that describes someone who is very overweight. You might describe Santa Claus as a corpulent man with a ruddy complexion and a jolly grin. There are certainly many other ways to describe an overweight person: obese, portly, and stout are only a few. Corpulent is from Latin corpulentus, from corpus "body." The Latin suffix -ulentus, corresponding to English -ulent, has the meaning "full of, having in quantity."
Vocabulary lists containing corpulent
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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Lord of the Flies
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Body Language: Corp ("Body")
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
In a 1926 strip, we meet Skinny Slats, an ironically corpulent lad who squeezes out of an inkwell.
From New York Times ● Jun. 4, 2024
Colombian artist Fernando Botero, who gained worldwide fame with his sculptures and paintings of corpulent figures, has died at the age of 91.
From BBC ● Sep. 15, 2023
In his sweeping 1965 novel “Dune,” Herbert introduced one for the ages: a corpulent, power-hungry sadist with the suitably sinister name of Baron Vladimir Harkonnen.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 22, 2021
We’d eat at a table next to a mural of a corpulent iguana wearing sunglasses and a sombrero.
From Washington Post ● May 15, 2019
She was a big woman, in stature almost equalling her husband, and corpulent besides: she showed virile force in the contest—more than once she almost throttled him, athletic as he was.
From "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Brontë
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
