long-winded

adjective

long-wind·​ed ˌlȯŋ-ˈwin-dəd How to pronounce long-winded (audio)
ˈlȯŋ-ˌwin-
1
: tediously long in speaking or writing
2
: not easily subject to loss of breath
long-windedly adverb
long-windedness noun

Examples of long-winded in a Sentence

his long-winded explanation could have been boiled down to two sentences
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Perhaps an ode to the cerulean sweater that prompted Priestly's long-winded rant in the original film? Taijuan Moorman, USA Today, 28 Aug. 2025 An irritating habit of his is to stop by and launch into long-winded stories about some mundane event in his present or past life or to pontificate about a current event. R. Eric Thomas, Chicago Tribune, 25 Aug. 2025 Part of the problem with policymaking at the level of the federal government is that the impacts are often too large, too long-winded, too abstract to really be able to nearly encompass their full breadth, particularly for busy people who have their own immediate concerns to worry about. New York Daily News, Twin Cities, 19 Aug. 2025 That belief leads to a lot of money wasted on plain-vanilla surveys, irritating dinnertime interrupting spam calls, and ends with long-winded market research reports replete with cross-tabulations and PowerPoint presentations. Chip Bell, Forbes.com, 15 Aug. 2025 Which is a long-winded way of saying the industry got out over its skis. Jonathan M. Gitlin, ArsTechnica, 8 Aug. 2025 All of this is a vaguely long-winded way of making a simple point — the outlook for Wolves’ defence has changed dramatically over the course of this season. Steve Madeley, The Athletic, 14 Mar. 2025 That's an extremely long-winded way of saying that the Spore Drive allows a starship to miraculously materialize somewhere else light-years away. Richard Edwards, Space.com, 14 Mar. 2025 Commit to the vocal rest and skip the long-winded interviews. Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 3 Mar. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1578, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Time Traveler
The first known use of long-winded was in 1578

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Long-winded.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/long-winded. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.

Kids Definition

long-winded

adjective
long-wind·​ed
ˈlȯŋ-ˈwin-dəd
: boringly long in speaking or writing
long-windedly adverb
long-windedness noun
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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