stilted
Americanadjective
-
stiffly dignified or formal, as speech or literary style; pompous.
- Synonyms:
- constrained, stuffy, mannered, wooden
-
Architecture. (of an arch) resting on imposts treated in part as downward continuations of the arch.
adjective
-
(of speech, writing, etc) formal, pompous, or bombastic
-
not flowing continuously or naturally
stilted conversation
-
architect (of an arch) having vertical piers between the impost and the springing
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of stilted
Explanation
The adjective stilted describes something—usually a style of writing or speaking—that is unnaturally formal. Imagine someone walking awkwardly on a pair of stilts and you have a good impression of the word stilted — wooden and stiff. Stilt is found in the mid-15th century, referring to walking on wooden stilts across marshy ground. A hundred years later, the word stilted came to refer to the posts holding up a building. It wasn't until 1820 that the word was used as we use it now, to describe writing or speaking that does not flow smoothly.
Vocabulary lists containing stilted
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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.
For an hours-long ceremony that forfeited any claim to being cool by welcoming two profoundly crappy new categories into its telecast — Most Stilted “Little Mermaid” Preview and Dullest Warner Bros.
From Washington Post • Mar. 13, 2023
Stilted and scattered and strangely cold in its cinematography, it’s a handsomely shot whole lotta nothin’.
From Slate • Aug. 15, 2018
Stilted summed up the confusion of many, as follows: "Blood Bowl chat – impenetrable dice blog crossed with PES blog, with the volume of 'at peak' Demon Souls blog."
From The Guardian • Mar. 29, 2011
The Stilted refers to those who James elected not to join this summer, after visits in consideration thereof.
From Newsweek • Sep. 16, 2010
The Semicircular and the Stilted Semicircular Arch were the only arches in use till the introduction of the Pointed Arch.
From Architecture Gothic and Renaissance by Smith, T. Roger (Thomas Roger)
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.
