1
as in ambiguity
deliberate evasion in speech
rather than answering the question directly, he resorted to circumlocution, which made her suspect that he was hiding something
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in repetition
the use of too many words to express an idea
your papers have to be five pages long, but that's five pages of substance, not circumlocution
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of circumlocution
But in terms of its actual content, the statement was pretty thin gruel, bristling with public relations-style circumlocution and vagueness.
—
Business Columnist, Los Angeles Times, 27 Jan. 2026
Here, instead, she’s swayed by a dead Diana softly squeezing her hand and kindly hinting — the dead Diana is an ace at tactful circumlocution — that now is the time to show a mourning nation some emotion.
—Tom Gliatto, Peoplemag, 16 Nov. 2023
This year, House Republicans unveiled a new Conservative Climate Caucus that, in a fascinating circumlocution, sort of recognizes that fossil fuels are causing the planet to warm.
—Robinson Meyer, The Atlantic, 2 Nov. 2022
Powell’s statement yesterday (September 22) is the masterpiece of its type, building upon fifteen months of this playful circumlocution, downshifting into bureaucratic blandness.
—George Calhoun, Forbes, 23 Sep. 2021
But the national crisis in policing and the response to it isn’t a matter of arid elite debate or familiar political circumlocution and compromise anymore.
—David Roth, The New Republic, 11 June 2020
By condensing Balzac’s opus to a few paragraphs, Barthelme was having a laugh not just at his predecessor’s genteel circumlocution—his tendency to describe buildings and manufacturing procedures and family trees in lavish detail—but also at the conventions of novelistic mimesis itself.
—Giles Harvey, The New York Review of Books, 23 Apr. 2020
These circumlocutions are meant to emphasize the fact that Africans traded like chattel were not, in their essence, slaves but human beings.
—Lionel Shriver, Harper's magazine, 25 Nov. 2019
Business Columnist, Los Angeles Times, 27 Jan. 2026
Here, instead, she’s swayed by a dead Diana softly squeezing her hand and kindly hinting — the dead Diana is an ace at tactful circumlocution — that now is the time to show a mourning nation some emotion.
—Tom Gliatto, Peoplemag, 16 Nov. 2023
This year, House Republicans unveiled a new Conservative Climate Caucus that, in a fascinating circumlocution, sort of recognizes that fossil fuels are causing the planet to warm.
—Robinson Meyer, The Atlantic, 2 Nov. 2022
Powell’s statement yesterday (September 22) is the masterpiece of its type, building upon fifteen months of this playful circumlocution, downshifting into bureaucratic blandness.
—George Calhoun, Forbes, 23 Sep. 2021
But the national crisis in policing and the response to it isn’t a matter of arid elite debate or familiar political circumlocution and compromise anymore.
—David Roth, The New Republic, 11 June 2020
By condensing Balzac’s opus to a few paragraphs, Barthelme was having a laugh not just at his predecessor’s genteel circumlocution—his tendency to describe buildings and manufacturing procedures and family trees in lavish detail—but also at the conventions of novelistic mimesis itself.
—Giles Harvey, The New York Review of Books, 23 Apr. 2020
These circumlocutions are meant to emphasize the fact that Africans traded like chattel were not, in their essence, slaves but human beings.
—Lionel Shriver, Harper's magazine, 25 Nov. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for circumlocution
Noun
-
While all three negatively impact both individual and organizational outcomes, researchers found that role ambiguity tended to be the most detrimental driver.—
Paula Davis,
Forbes.com,
11 June 2026
-
At the same time, each phase of progress has also revealed the ambiguity of tools that can cause harm when not oriented toward the good.—
Pope Leo XIV,
Boston Herald,
9 June 2026
Noun
-
Its beauty lies in repetition, in comfort and in the quiet rituals of everyday life.—
Lisa Lockwood,
Footwear News,
16 June 2026
-
No matter how often Democrats and race idolaters insist that white supremacy remains America's defining force, repetition does not transform an assertion into reality.—
Bobby Burack OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
15 June 2026
Noun
-
The perpetual buzz of mining bees mingled with the shuffle of rabbits through the bushes, woodpeckers’ rapid-fire drilling, and the hard-staccato tchack, tchack, tchack of ravenlike birds known as jackdaws, creating a subtle symphony.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
11 June 2026
-
Its been lost in a shuffle of the NBA Finals and Stanley Cup Finals, but another championship will be handed out next week.—
Darren Cooper,
Forbes.com,
11 June 2026
Noun
-
Flatulent describes inflated, pretentious writing; garrulity describes excessive talkativeness.—
Gary Gilson,
Star Tribune,
31 Oct. 2020
Noun
-
The people around Trump support these equivocations because anyone who opposes Trump’s ideas in the White House will be shown the door; any Republican who speaks up in Congress will be primaried out of their seat.—
Tom Nichols,
The Atlantic,
19 May 2026
-
First, Congress tasked the Fed with the mission to ensure price stability, without excuse or equivocation, argument or anguish.—
Eleanor Pringle,
Fortune,
21 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Director Scott Ellis understands all this, and thus the admirably specific physical business and slurred verbosity in his gently outré revival really makes for quite the amusing diversion.—
Chris Jones,
Chicago Tribune,
20 Apr. 2026
-
Director Scott Ellis understands all this and thus the admirably specific physical business and slurred verbosity in his gently outré revival really makes for quite the amusing diversion.—
Chris Jones,
New York Daily News,
20 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Overall, the researchers estimate that early diffusion of the iPhone caused between a third and a half of the decline in the general US fertility rate between 2007 and 2011.—
Deidre McPhillips,
CNN Money,
12 June 2026
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At the same time, Natural Fiber Welding inked partnerships with Stella McCartney, Ralph Lauren, MCM, and Alexander McQueen’s diffusion line MCQ to use its Mirum material.—
Bella Webb,
Vogue,
11 June 2026
Noun
-
Just as the limitless space of web text tempts writers to indulge their logorrhea, the blinking, ever-transmuting, cartoonish interface of web browsers prevents would-be readers from paying attention to anything for longer than about 7 seconds.—
Barton Swaim,
WSJ,
19 Sep. 2022
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Nor has Musk kept his Twitter logorrhea in check in other respects.—
Michael Hiltzik,
Los Angeles Times,
28 Apr. 2022
Cite this Entry
“Circumlocution.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/circumlocution. Accessed 19 Jun. 2026.
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