lengthy
Americanadjective
-
having or being of great length; very long.
a lengthy journey.
-
tediously verbose; very long; too long.
a lengthy speech.
adjective
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of lengthy
Explanation
Lengthy things are long and drawn out. Your teacher's lengthy lecture might extend far beyond the end of class and leave many people dozing at their desks. The adjective lengthy is almost always used to describe a duration of time (or sometimes a long piece of writing), rather than the physical length of something. So long-lasting speeches and endless waits at the bus stop could both be called lengthy, but you wouldn't describe your friend's long hair that way. Lengthy is an 18th century American invention, also adopted by the British in the nineteenth century.
Vocabulary lists containing lengthy
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.
See Examples For:
Senate Majority Leader John Thune said Tuesday that the two old chums “had a lengthy and substantive conversation that covered a variety of topics, including national security.”
From Slate ● Jul. 11, 2026
The housing market has been in a lengthy slump, but sales are showing signs of picking up this summer.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 10, 2026
MRI exams can be lengthy and uncomfortable, particularly when scans need to be repeated because important anatomical details are difficult to capture.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 10, 2026
In a rare show of division, fellow 9th Circuit Judge Jay Bybee, a George W. Bush appointee, wrote a lengthy statement urging the appellate court to review the Oregon decision with a larger panel.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 10, 2026
Cremonini went on to publish a lengthy book on the heavens in which no mention was made of Galileo’s discoveries, for the simple reason that they were irrelevant to the task of reconstructing Aristotle’s thinking.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
Meta's spokesperson told the BBC the majority of its glasses users would not be impacted by its move to limit lengthier Conversation Focus use to subscribers.
From BBC ● Jul. 2, 2026
When it comes to longer-term bonds, the analysts’ formula requires an even lengthier holding period.
From MarketWatch ● May 22, 2026
Some retailers say the switch to a lengthier delivery time came with an unexpected benefit: a drop in returns.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 7, 2026
Demand also was strong for lengthier maturities, with a new 30-year bond seeing strong demand External link at Thursday’s auction.
From Barron's ● Feb. 13, 2026
Many judges, prosecutors, and defense lawyers do a poor job of recognizing the special needs of the mentally disabled, which leads to wrongful convictions, lengthier prison terms, and high rates of recidivism.
From "Just Mercy" by Bryan Stevenson
After the onset of the pandemic, Corning endured six consecutive quarters of shrinking revenue, its lengthiest drop since the 2001 telecom crash.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 7, 2026
Liu’s case appears to be one of the lengthiest deputy shooting investigations in recent sheriff’s department history, according to county records.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 17, 2023
Seattle had its lengthiest injury report of the season Thursday with 11 players not participating and three others limited.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 21, 2023
He was outlasting Djokovic on the lengthiest baseline exchanges.
From Washington Times ● Sep. 2, 2023
But the lengthiest story in the book, “The Farmer and the Hunt,” was unfamiliar to her, and she stared often and long at the illustration that accompanied it.
From "Ash" by Malinda Lo
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.
