brevity

American  

[brev-i-tee] / ˈbrɛv ɪ ti /

noun

1. shortness of time or duration; briefness.

   the brevity of human life.

   Antonyms:

   length

2. the quality of expressing much in few words; terseness.

   Ironically, it is long-winded Polonius in Shakespeare's Hamlet who famously says that brevity is the soul of wit.

   Synonyms:

   pithiness, succinctness, compactness

   Antonyms:

   length

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brevity British  

/ ˈbrɛvɪtɪ /

noun

1. conciseness of expression; lack of verbosity

2. a short duration; brief time

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Related Words

Brevity, conciseness refer to the use of few words in speaking. Brevity emphasizes the short duration of speech: a response reduced to extreme brevity. Conciseness emphasizes compactness of expression: Her prose is clear in spite of great conciseness.

Etymology

Origin of brevity

First recorded in 1500–10; from Anglo-French brevite, Old French brievete, from briev(e), feminine of brief brief + -ete -ity

Example Sentences

The other issue with the album is its brevity.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 31, 2026

Yet the brevity of this pre-election period "will likely not have much of an effect", said Michael Cucek, assistant professor of Asian Studies at Temple University's Japan Campus.

From Barron's • Jan. 27, 2026

Kerr’s early contests often ended in less than two minutes, an oops-I-missed-it-grabbing-a-beer brevity that would have made pay-per-view buyers grumble.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 3, 2025

His statement was notable for its relative, and unusual, brevity – but primarily for its vagueness.

From BBC • Aug. 16, 2025

“Why? I wrote them a letter on why I was the answer to sliced bread,” is how Flom explains it, with characteristic brevity.

From "Outliers" by Malcolm Gladwell