long-winded
Americanadjective
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talking or writing at tedious length.
long-winded after-dinner speakers.
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continued to a tedious length in speech or writing.
another of his long-winded election speeches.
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able to breathe deeply; not tiring easily.
adjective
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tiresomely long
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capable of energetic activity without becoming short of breath
Other Word Forms
- long-windedly adverb
- long-windedness noun
Etymology
Origin of long-winded
First recorded in 1580–90
Explanation
Someone who's long-winded takes way too long to tell a story or give a speech. Once your long-winded history teacher gets started on an anecdote about the Civil War, everyone in the class sighs deeply. A long-winded explanation is one that uses many words when just a few would do. And your grandfather's long-winded toasts before Thanksgiving dinner inevitably end in everyone's food getting cold before they can start eating it. An older meaning of this word was "able to do something for a long time without losing one's breath," but the modern definition dates from the 1580s, when it specifically meant "given to lengthy speeches."
Vocabulary lists containing long-winded
Idioms and Expressions, List 4
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Idioms and Expressions, List 4
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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.
The governor, in a long-winded response, said he wasn’t trying to impress anyone, but “press upon you I’m like you.”
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 23, 2026
What has gotten out of hand is this litany of long-winded toasts.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 29, 2025
Elsewhere in the long-winded ceremony, the president was distracted by a woman in the crowd who he believed looked like Ivanka Trump, asking her to turn around for the cameras.
From Salon • Dec. 14, 2025
For troubleshooting tech and getting how-to’s for basic home improvements, some of my interviewees found ChatGPT gets to the root of the question quicker than long-winded YouTube videos.
From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 25, 2025
And what about if he said, “Dr. Stanpole, old pal, you’re the most long-winded licensed medical man alive.”
From "A Separate Peace" by John Knowles
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.
