fulsome

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adjective ful·some \ ˈfu̇l-səm \

Updated on: 11 Sep 2017

Definition of fulsome

1 a :characterized by abundance :copious

describes in fulsome detail
—G. N. Shuster

fulsome bird life. The feeder overcrowded
—Maxine Kumin

b :generous in amount, extent, or spirit

the passengers were fulsome in praise of the plane's crew
—Don Oliver

a fulsome victory for the far left
—Bruce Rothwell

the greetings have been fulsome, the farewells tender
—Simon Gray

c :being full and well developed

she was in generally fulsome, limpid voice
—Thor Eckert, Jr.

2 :aesthetically, morally, or generally offensive

fulsome lies and nauseous flattery
—William Congreve

the devil take thee for a … fulsome rogue
—George Villiers

3 :exceeding the bounds of good taste :overdone

the fulsome chromium glitter of the escalators dominating the central hall
—Lewis Mumford

4 :excessively complimentary or flattering :effusive

an admiration whose extent I did not express, lest I be thought fulsome
—A. J. Liebling

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fulsomely

adverb

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fulsomeness

noun

See fulsome defined for English-language learners

See fulsome defined for kids

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Using fulsome

The senses shown above are the chief living senses of fulsome. Sense 2, which was a generalized term of disparagement in the late 17th century, is the least common of these. Fulsome became a point of dispute when sense 1, thought to be obsolete in the 19th century, began to be revived in the 20th. The dispute was exacerbated by the fact that the large dictionaries of the first half of the century missed the beginnings of the revival. Sense 1 has not only been revived but has spread in its application and continues to do so. The chief danger for the user of fulsome is ambiguity. Unless the context is made very clear, the reader or hearer cannot be sure whether such an expression as "fulsome praise" is meant in sense 1b or in sense 4.

Examples of fulsome in a Sentence

the player's fulsome praise for the coach showed just how hard he was trying to be named captain of the team
grateful survivors who were fulsome in their praise of the rescue team

Recent Examples of fulsome from the Web

But for all her historical influence, Vaughan’s trilling vibrato and fulsome, romantic ballad style often sound old-fashioned to listeners today.

— paul de barros, The Seattle Times, "Swingin’ easy with some insights into ‘Queen of Bebop’ Sarah Vaughan," 2 July 2017
A 400-foot-long gated driveway leads to the estate, ending in a motor court and an open-air valet area with underground heaters — essential for fulsome parties that are synonymous with such coastal properties.

— r. daniel foster, latimes.com, "The views alone might be worth $80 million for this revived Malibu Castle," 9 June 2017
At times, the musicians underscored the speaking, accompanying Robbins as Quixote describes Dulcinea’s beauty in fulsome poetic detail, or with Bickers furious at the keyboard as Quixote prepares to attack the herds.

— by libby hanssen, kansascity.com, "Bach Aria Soloists’ ‘Don Quixote’ connects story and song of the Spanish Baroque," 4 June 2017
Mr. Farrell, in an article in The New York Times Sunday Review over the weekend, highlighted the notes by Mr. Haldeman, along with many of Nixon’s fulsome denials of any efforts to thwart the peace process before the election.

— peter baker, New York Times, "Nixon Tried to Spoil Johnson’s Vietnam Peace Talks in ’68, Notes Show," 2 Jan. 2017
This challenge was greeted with less than fulsome praise by evolutionary biologists studying changes within species.

— brandon keim, WIRED, "Roll Over, Darwin: Scientists Suggest Update to Evolution," 26 June 2007

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'fulsome.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

You Don't Need to Get Negative About fulsome

There is a lot of confusion about exactly what fulsome means. Some critics disapprove of using it in its original copious sense because they feel that sense is not negative enough; they say that fulsome should always be at least mildly deprecatory. It's true that today fulsome is often used pejoratively to describe overly effusive language, but modern English writers still sometimes use it simply to mean abundant, or occasionally even in contexts where it is complimentary. Some writers go to the more negative extreme, using it for things that are offensive to normal tastes or sensibilities. To avoid misinterpretation, either be sure that the context in which you use the word makes the intended meaning clear or choose a different word.