cir·cum·lo·cu·tion
Audio Help [sur-kuh
m-loh-kyoo-shuh
n] Pronunciation Key
—Related forms
Audio Help [sur-kuh
m-loh-kyoo-shuh
n] Pronunciation Key –noun
| 1. | a roundabout or indirect way of speaking; the use of more words than necessary to express an idea. |
| 2. | a roundabout expression. |
—Related forms
cir·cum·loc·u·to·ry
Audio Help [sur-kuh
m-lok-yuh-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee] Pronunciation Key, cir·cum·lo·cu·tion·al, cir·cum·lo·cu·tion·ar·y, adjective
Audio Help [sur-kuh
m-lok-yuh-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee] Pronunciation Key, cir·cum·lo·cu·tion·al, cir·cum·lo·cu·tion·ar·y, adjective —Synonyms 1. rambling, meandering, verbosity, prolixity.
| Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006. |
circumlocution
To learn more about circumlocution visit Britannica.com
| © 2008 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. |
| cir·cum·lo·cu·tion
Audio Help (sûr'kəm-lō-kyōō'shən) Pronunciation Key
n.
[Middle English circumlocucioun, from Latin circumlocūtiō, circumlocūtiōn-, from circumlocūtus, past participle of circumloquī : circum-, circum- + loquī, to speak; see tolkw- in Indo-European roots.] cir'cum·loc'u·to'ri·ly (-lŏk'yə-tôr'ə-lē, -tōr'-) adv., cir'cum·loc'u·to'ry (-tôr'ē, -tōr'ē) adj. |
| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
circumlocution
c.1510, from L. circumlocutionem (a loan-translation of Gk. periphrasis) "speaking around" (the topic), from circum- "around" + locutionem (nom. locutio) "a speaking," from stem of loqui "to speak."
| Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper |
| circumlocution | |
noun | |
| 1. | a style that involves indirect ways of expressing things |
| 2. | an indirect way of expressing something |
| WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University. |
circumlocution [(sur-kuhm-loh-kyooh-shuhn)]
Roundabout speech or writing: “The driveway was not unlike that military training device known as an obstacle course” is a circumlocution for “The driveway resembled an obstacle course.” Circumlocution comes from Latin words meaning “speaking around.”
[Chapter:] Conventions of Written English
| The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
Circumlocution
Cir`cum*lo*cu"tion\, n. [L. circumlocutio, fr. circumloqui, -locutus, to make use of circumlocution; circum + loqui to speak. See Loquacious.] The use of many words to express an idea that might be expressed by few; indirect or roundabout language; a periphrase. the plain Billingsgate way of calling names . . . would save abundance of time lost by circumlocution. --Swift. Circumlocution office, a term of ridicule for a governmental office where business is delayed by passing through the hands of different officials.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
circumlocution
circumlocution was Word of the Day on October 27, 1999.
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