verbosity

American  

[ver-bos-i-tee] / vərˈbɒs ɪ ti /

noun

1. the state or quality of being verbose; superfluity of words; wordiness.

   His speeches were always marred by verbosity.

   Synonyms:

   turgidity, redundancy, prolixity

   Antonyms:

   pithiness, terseness

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Other Word Forms

• nonverbosity
  noun

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Etymology

Origin of verbosity

From the Late Latin word verbōsitās, dating back to 1535–45. See verbose, -ity

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Explanation

Verbosity is a quality possessed by people who talk a lot while saying very little at all. The root verb — also seen in verbal — is a clue this word has to do with talking. Specifically, verbosity is the quality of gabbing and blabbing at length. That might sound like a talent, and it sort of is, but usually the words are a bit empty. You could be accused of verbosity if you like to exaggerate or wax poetic. Most of the time, verbosity is empty talk — a whole lot of nothing dressed up in too many words.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

verbosity

His Harvard-and-Yale pedigree and debate-me-bro verbosity make him come off more like a snob than a man of the people.

From Slate ● Oct. 23, 2026

Bronner inherited his verbosity and gumption from his grandfather, Emanuel Bronner, who originally crammed all-caps, feel-good credos onto the labels of his soap bottles in the 1940s.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 9, 2026

The previous record-holder was President Clinton, famously known for his Southern-twang verbosity.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 25, 2026

Its sportscasters are more judicious with their verbosity this time around too.

From Salon ● Aug. 9, 2024

Then the wedding breakfast, where doubtless, under the combined influence of love, lemonade and excitement, I made numerous speeches, and soared to heights of windy verbosity seldom heard outside Parliament House.

From From Chart House to Bush Hut Being the Record of a Sailor's 7 Years in the Queensland Bush by Charles W. L. Bryde

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