wordy

[ wur-dee ]

adjective

, word·i·er, word·i·est.

1. characterized by or given to the use of many, or too many, words; verbose:

   She grew impatient at his wordy reply.

   Synonyms: voluble, loquacious, talkative, diffuse

2. pertaining to or consisting of words; verbal.

wordy

/ ˈwɜːdɪ /

adjective

1. using, inclined to use, or containing an excess of words

   a wordy writer

   a wordy document

2. of the nature of or relating to words; verbal

Derived Forms

• ˈwordiness, noun
• ˈwordily, adverb

Other Words From

• wordi·ly adverb
• wordi·ness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of wordy¹

First recorded before 1100; Middle English; Old English wordig. See word, -y ¹

Synonym Study

Wordy, prolix, redundant, pleonastic all mean using more words than necessary to convey a desired meaning. Wordy, the broadest and least specific of these terms, may, in addition to indicating an excess of words, suggest a garrulousness or loquaciousness: a wordy, gossipy account of a simple incident. Prolix refers to speech or writing extended to great and tedious length with inconsequential details: a prolix style that tells you more than you need or want to know. Redundant and pleonastic both refer to unnecessary repetition of language. Redundant has also a generalized sense of “excessive” or “no longer needed”: the dismissal of redundant employees. In describing language, it most often refers to overelaboration through the use of expressions that repeat the sense of other expressions in a passage: a redundant text crammed with amplifications of the obvious. Pleonastic, usually a technical term, refers most often to expressions that repeat something that has been said before: “A true fact” and “a free gift” are pleonastic expressions.

Example Sentences

So expect another wordy blog post from Nick Clegg very soon.

From TechCrunch

The updates his platoons filed every day helped commanders track targets of interest, but they were sometimes wordy or hard to parse.

From Washington Post

Toxic was cute, Poisonous Pop Princess had a nice ring to it, just a lil wordy!

From The Daily Beast

In the parlor, their undisputed court, the ladies received the attention which had been diverted from them by the wordy war.

From Project Gutenberg

If Guy Oscard was no great adept at wordy warfare, he was at all events strong in his reception of punishment.

From Project Gutenberg

He looked down the stairs and saw Tom and Tad Sobber near a landing, having a wordy quarrel.

From Project Gutenberg

Others joined in the wordy attack, much to the elderly woman's confusion and shame.

From Project Gutenberg

They speak with their lives instead of their tongues, concerning so many things that other people are wordy about.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• lengthy
• long-winded
• rambling
• turgid