laconically
Americanadverb
Explanation
Anything that's spoken laconically gets right to the point using very few words. If the characters in your new play speak laconically, you'll write more stage directions than dialogue. This adverb comes from a Greek root, Lakonia, the name of a region in ancient Greece known for its citizens' skill at making convincing arguments using very few words. If your best friend has a similarly terse style, that means they also speak laconically. Talking this way makes speeches shorter, debates quicker, and conversations full of long silences.
Vocabulary lists containing laconically
The Count of Monte Cristo
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Code Name Verity
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Moneyball
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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.
As Ms. Wulf laconically remarks, “George wasn’t asked.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 12, 2026
Deveraux's companion asks where Scott is, to which Deveraux laconically replies, "Around."
From Salon ● Nov. 27, 2021
“The unexpected,” he says, almost laconically, “occurs with great regularity.”
From Washington Post ● May 14, 2021
This sequence could almost be interpreted as one in which Aniston greets Pitt with obvious delight and he gamely, but more laconically, smiles through it, not quite able to match her energy.
From Slate ● Jan. 20, 2020
“Castle Craig,” this bogle of a railway employee repeated laconically.
From "Code Name Verity" by Elizabeth Wein
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.
