ses·qui·pe·da·li·an

[ses-kwi-pi-dey-lee-uhn, -deyl-yuhn]
adjective Also, ses·quip·e·dal [ses-kwip-i-dl] .
1.
given to using long words.
2.
(of a word) containing many syllables.
noun
3.
a sesquipedalian word.
Origin:
1605–15; < Latin sēsquipedālis measuring a foot and a half (see sesqui-, pedal) + -an

Related forms
ses·qui·pe·dal·i·ty [ses-kwi-pi-dal-i-tee] , ses·qui·pe·da·li·an·ism, ses·quip·e·dal·ism [ses-kwip-i-dl-iz-uhm, ‐kwi-peed-l-iz-uhm] , noun
un·ses·qui·pe·da·li·an, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source Link To sesquipedalian
00:10
Sesquipedalian has a plethora of syllables.
So is pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis. Does it mean:
a white, crystalline, water-insoluble solid, C14H9Cl5, usually derived from chloral by reaction with chlorobenzene in the presence of fuming sulfuric acid: used as an insecticide and as a scabicide and pediculicide: agricultural use prohibited in the U.S.
an obscure term ostensibly referring to a lung disease caused by silica dust, sometimes cited as one of the longest words in the English language.
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Collins
World English Dictionary
sesquipedalian or sesquipedal (ˌsɛskwɪpɪˈdeɪlɪən, sɛsˈkwɪpədəl) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
—adj
1.  tending to use very long words
2.  (of words or expressions) long and ponderous; polysyllabic
 
—n
3.  a polysyllabic word
 
[C17: from Latin sēsquipedālis of a foot and a half (coined by Horace in Ars Poetica), from sesqui- + pedālis of the foot, from pēs foot]
 
sesquipedal or sesquipedal
 
—adj
 
—n
 
[C17: from Latin sēsquipedālis of a foot and a half (coined by Horace in Ars Poetica), from sesqui- + pedālis of the foot, from pēs foot]
 
sesquipe'dalianism or sesquipedal
 
—n

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

sesquipedalian
1615, from L. sesquipedalia verba "words a foot-and-a-half long," in Horace's "Ars Poetica" (97), nicely illustrating the thing he is criticizing, from sesqui- "half as much again" (see sesquicentennial) + pes "foot" (see foot)
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Example sentences
But recently a strange whimsy has started to creep in among the sesquipedalian prose of scientific journals.
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