verbiage
Americannoun
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overabundance or superfluity of words, as in writing or speech; wordiness; verbosity.
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manner or style of expressing something in words; wording.
a manual of official verbiage.
noun
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the excessive and often meaningless use of words; verbosity
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rare diction; wording
Etymology
Origin of verbiage
First recorded in 1715–25; from French, from Middle French verbi(er) “to gabble” (also guerbloier, verboier, werbler, with a change in spelling by association with verbe “word,” from Germanic; see verb, warble 1 ( def. )) + -age -age
Explanation
Verbiage is what it sounds like — a lot of words: verbs, nouns, adjectives and all the other parts of speech. Usually, verbiage means a few too many words — like the excessive verbiage in a legal document. Verbiage comes from the 18th-century French verbier, meaning "to chatter." Verbiage can mean just the words being used to communicate, or a bunch of empty words used to obscure communication. Someone long-winded might receive a sarcastic "compliment" about his verbiage, while another speaker might receive genuine applause for intelligent verbiage, or choice of words.
Vocabulary lists containing verbiage
Fahrenheit 451
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100 SAT Words Beginning with "V"
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Unit 2: Pivotal Words and Phrases
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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.
So little of Mr. Carlson’s recent verbiage bears scrutiny that I’m left to wonder what it’s all about.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 20, 2025
It’s one of those things where the verbiage that everyone uses is “attached.”
From Salon • Oct. 17, 2025
So when you come in as a freshman, it’s all the same terminology and verbiage.
From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 18, 2024
“If you had that document with that exact verbiage issued by a CEO of a publicly traded company, they would be charged with fraud in two seconds. That is insider trading.”
From BBC • Nov. 20, 2024
The opposite side of the document once had verbiage, but the image has faded with age and is impossible to decipher, despite numerous attempts by modern science.
From "The First State of Being" by Erin Entrada Kelly
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.
