sententiously
Americanadverb
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in the manner of a pithy saying or aphorism.
“A camel is the only wealth that carries itself,” observed Digby sententiously.
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in a way that is self-righteous or excessively moralizing.
The novel is not sententiously written, but its lessons are clear and well taken.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of sententiously
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.
Chloe fervidly supports him, admitting that she — and her generation, she adds sententiously — “didn’t do enough. We stood by and watched it all happen.”
From New York Times ● Nov. 30, 2017
It’s to the movie’s credit that these themes aren’t sententiously signposted; they seem to spring organically from the characters’ words and actions, in no small part because of the contributions of the superb cast.
From Slate ● Jan. 20, 2012
Although the stereotype imagines vegetarians sententiously screaming at any meat eater they see at the lunch counter or dinner table, I've found quite the opposite to be true.
From Salon ● Aug. 24, 2011
With a carryover of nearly 100,000,000 bushels, Canada sententiously added, it would be enough to feed the United Kingdom for almost two years.
From Time Magazine Archive
“All men are physico-chemically equal,” said Henry sententiously.
From "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley
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.
