terse

play

adjective \ ˈtərs \

Definition of terse

terser; tersest

1 :using few words :devoid of superfluity

a terse summary

; also :short, brusque

dismissed me with a terse "no"

2 :smoothly elegant :polished

—

tersely

adverb

—

terseness

noun

See terse defined for English-language learners

See terse defined for kids

Examples of terse in a Sentence

Everything about him is tidy, from his terse wit to the flecks of gray hair that fall in precise iterations around the edges of his scalp. —Devin Gordon, Newsweek, 29 July 2002
… Johnston stays bolted to the wheelhouse floor, wrestling the helm and jotting down notes in the ship log. His entries are terse, bullet descriptions of the unending chaos outside. —Sebastian Junger, The Perfect Storm, 1997
This vicious cycle was captured succinctly in Gandhi's terse warning that an eye for an eye makes the whole world blind. —David McCabe, Commonweal, 11 Apr. 1997
She accepts the caller's terse expression of sympathy and duly expresses in return her appreciation for that unenviable bit of message-bearing. —John Barth, Harper's, January 1994
She gave me a few terse instructions and promptly left the room.
could tell from his terse replies to my questions that he was in no mood to talk

Recent Examples of terse from the Web

Another got a terse letter for not spraying the mold off the side of his house frequently enough.

— cleve r. wootson jr., Washington Post, "He served in Vietnam. His HOA just ordered him to remove an American flag from his mailbox.," 7 Aug. 2017
As Wilson unfurled his lament, taking generous pauses between phrases, Specter provided melodically terse, tautly coiled instrumental commentary.

— howard reich, chicagotribune.com, "Cash Box Kings shake up SPACE with 'Royal Mint'," 1 Aug. 2017
The discussion between the city’s legal team and union representatives was terse and peppered with comments from the crowd of about 120 teachers who showed up at city hall for the public meeting.

— brian ballou, Sun-Sentinel.com, "Pembroke Pines, charter school teachers at impasse over raises," 27 July 2017
The crescendo of their contentious relationship came in September 2016, when the two shared a visibly terse meeting on the sidelines of the G20 in Hanghzhou, China.

— kevin liptak, CNN, "Five things to watch for during Trump's meeting with Putin," 7 July 2017
There’s little sign of the site’s haunting history — just a small metal placard inscribed with a terse account of the uprising in 1973.

— feliz solomon / bangkok, Time, "Unlocked for 1 Week Only!," 29 June 2017
After the body was discovered, the Defense Department issued a terse statement noting an investigation was underway.

— jim ryan, OregonLive.com, "Arthur Jackson, Medal of Honor recipient and Grant High School grad, dies at 92," 22 June 2017
The Army has been closed mouthed about the incident, issuing a terse two-sentence reply to questions Friday.

— tom roeder, The Denver Post, "Jail records identify two soldiers held in Fort Carson shooting," 16 June 2017
In a terse statement sent to reporters around 2 a.m. Beijing time, Anbang said only that Wu -- who had spent more than a decade transforming the company into a global juggernaut -- was no longer able to serve in his post because of personal reasons.

— Bloomberg.com, "Anbang Chairman's Mysterious Absence Adds to Intrigue," 14 June 2017

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

Origin and Etymology of terse

Latin tersus clean, neat, from past participle of tergēre to wipe off

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First Known Use: 1601

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terse Synonyms

Synonym Discussion of terse

concise, terse, succinct, laconic, summary, pithy, compendious mean very brief in statement or expression. concise suggests the removal of all that is superfluous or elaborative.

- a concise description

terse implies pointed conciseness.

- a terse reply

succinct implies the greatest possible compression.

- a succinct letter of resignation

laconic implies brevity to the point of seeming rude, indifferent, or mysterious.

- an aloof and laconic stranger

summary suggests the statement of main points with no elaboration or explanation.

- a summary listing of the year's main events

pithy adds to succinct or terse the implication of richness of meaning or substance.

- a comedy sharpened by pithy one-liners

compendious applies to what is at once full in scope and brief and concise in treatment.

- a compendious dictionary

TERSE Defined for English Language Learners

terse

play

adjective

Definition of terse for English Language Learners

: brief and direct in a way that may seem rude or unfriendly

TERSE Defined for Kids

terse

play

adjective \ ˈtərs \

Definition of terse for Students

terser; tersest

:being brief and to the point

a terse statement

—

tersely

adverb

Learn More about terse

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terse

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tersely

terseness

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Examples of terse in a Sentence

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Origin and Etymology of terse

terse Synonyms

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TERSE Defined for English Language Learners

terse

Definition of terse for English Language Learners

TERSE Defined for Kids

terse

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tersely

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