definitions

officialese

[ uh-fish-uh-leez, -lees ]
/ əˌfɪʃ əˈliz, -ˈlis /
SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR officialese ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a style of language used in some official statements, often criticized for its use of polysyllabic jargon and obscure, pretentiously wordy phrasing.

RELATED WORDS

diffusion, redundancy, garrulity, diffuseness, verbosity, circumlocution, fecundity, verbiage, loquacity, prolixity, pleonasm, tautology, periphrasis, logorrhea, loquaciousness, verbality, verbigeration

Nearby words

official receiver, official referee, official solicitor, official strike, officialdom, officialese, officialism, officialize, officially, officiant, officiary

Origin of officialese

First recorded in 1880–85; official + -ese
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

British Dictionary definitions for officialese

officialese

/ (əˌfɪʃəˈliːz) /

noun

language characteristic of official documents, esp when verbose or pedantic
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for officialese

officialese

n.

"language of officialdom," 1881, from official + -ese.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper