prolix

[ proh-liks, proh-liks ]

See synonyms for prolix on Thesaurus.com

adjective

extended to great, unnecessary, or tedious length; long and wordy.
(of a person) given to speaking or writing at great or tedious length.

Origin of prolix

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English, from Latin prōlixus “extended, long,” equivalent to prō- pro-¹ + -lixus, akin to līquī “to flow”; see liquor

synonym study For prolix

1. See wordy.

Other words for prolix

1	prolonged, protracted
1, 2	verbose

See synonyms for prolix on Thesaurus.com

Other words from prolix

pro·lix·i·ty [proh-lik-si-tee], /proʊˈlɪk sɪ ti/, pro·lix·ness, noun
pro·lix·ly, adverb
o·ver·pro·lix, adjective

Words Nearby prolix

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use prolix in a sentence

Or perhaps poetic justice demands that the life of an unstoppably prolix author be parceled out in multiple, overlapping volumes.
Norman Mailer: A Life Lived Loud | Adam Begley | October 20, 2013 | THE DAILY BEAST
Glenn Greenwald is raising a stink about this in his usual prolix way, and so on and so on.
Is Zero Dark Thirty Propaganda? | Michael Tomasky | December 10, 2012 | THE DAILY BEAST
Wordplay Bradlee could be prolix or pithy, as suited his ends.
Dear Asshole: The Letters of Ben Bradlee From New Biography | Matthew DeLuca | May 12, 2012 | THE DAILY BEAST
When they stopped for lack of breath, Master Baptist would ask questions, which usually called forth prolix replies.
The Surprises of Life | Georges Clemenceau
It is prolix, and in many parts whimsical; but contains some of the boldest reasonings to be found in print.
Life and Correspondence of David Hume, Volume II (of 2) | John Hill Burton

I grant that they deck Nature with somewhat too prolix a grace; but is beauty always best seen in deshabille?
Eugene Aram, Complete | Edward Bulwer-Lytton
Baha's style is rhetorical, verbose, prolix, but with a certain strength.
Bahaism and Its Claims | Samuel Graham Wilson
This excuse may serve in lieu of a better for the somewhat prolix method in which these rules are presented.
Ballades and Rondeaus, Chants Royal, Sestinas, Villanelles, etc, | Various

British Dictionary definitions for prolix

prolix

/ (ˈprəʊlɪks, prəʊˈlɪks) /

adjective

(of a speech, book, etc) so long as to be boring; verbose
indulging in prolix speech or writing; long-winded

Origin of prolix

C15: from Latin prōlixus stretched out widely, from pro- 1 + līquī to flow

Derived forms of prolix

prolixity or rare prolixness, noun
prolixly, adverb

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

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