terse
adjective
neatly or effectively concise; brief and pithy, as language.
terseness
-
a word derived from
terse.
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.
We need to go back to a little terseness.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 30, 2026
Her terseness has limitations, too — it makes her ideology transmissible, and easy to destabilize, or even undermine.
From New York Times ● Nov. 11, 2021
“Hesitant about what? I guess I’m frightened now that I realize how truly cowardly most people are,” singer-lyricist Oldham replies with a certain terseness.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 14, 2021
Exercising the latter can run the gamut from polite but telling terseness, to slow responses that telegraph the conversation is not going anywhere, to not saying anything at all when contacted.
From Slate ● Nov. 16, 2020
One Sunday, two weeks after the occupation, Aureliano entered Gerineldo Márquez’s house and with his usual terseness asked for a mug of coffee without sugar.
From "One Hundred Years of Solitude" by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
