as in rambling
using or containing more words than necessary to express an idea
the studio's statement that "the film's earnings did not live up to expectations" was a circumlocutory admission that the movie was a flop
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for circumlocutory
Adjective
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Routh then read from a rambling, 20-page statement.—
David Fischer,
Sun Sentinel,
4 Feb. 2026 -
Also in the village, with lower prices, the June Lake Villager Motel is a rambling property beneath a vintage mid-century sign.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
29 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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In 1949, a young American artist named Ray Johnson left Black Mountain College near Asheville, N.C., moved to New York City and began to explore his prolix talents, both visual and verbal.—
Roberta Smith,
New York Times,
30 May 2024
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His answer is this book: a laudably sincere, exasperatingly prolix and occasionally affecting rumination on the state of Egypt—its society, culture, history and politics—pegged to the maddening bureaucracy of the archive.—
Kapil Komireddi,
WSJ,
12 Mar. 2023
Adjective
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Dunleavy was more talkative about the Warriors’ flexibility in both the present and offseason, when Porzingis’ contract expires and the Warriors still possess all of their draft picks.—
Joseph Dycus,
Mercury News,
8 Feb. 2026
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Loud, funny and talkative, The Big Bopper merged radio and rock stardom and became a larger-than-life entity with a true theatrical presence.—
Chris Barilla,
PEOPLE,
3 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Instead, Reeves became Estragon, the more simplistic and long-suffering of the duo, while Winter tackled Vladimir, the more commanding and verbose character.—
Brent Lang,
Variety,
1 Oct. 2025
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Director Richard Linklater is fond of a verbose protagonist; Hawke and Julie Delpy gabbed through three films’ worth of Before movies, after all.—
Joe Reid,
Vulture,
16 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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The journey there was circuitous, basically random.—
Alexandra Romanoff,
Vogue,
10 Feb. 2026
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Her course to bobsled success has been arduous and circuitous, including moments of firsts for a woman – one of the firsts to pilot a mixed-gender team in four-man, and the first to drive an all-female team against men in a World Cup – and fights for a woman.—
Dana O’Neil,
CNN Money,
7 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Spanx AirEssentials Half Zip Half zip and quarter zip sweaters are having a moment, and this Spanx sweater elevates the style even further with a statement-making exaggerated collar.—
Taylor Fox,
Travel + Leisure,
11 Feb. 2026
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According to Nahmias, the low-top shoe’s design is meant to capture the mountainous ranges that meet the water throughout California and features an upper inspired by a popular skate shoe paired with an exaggerated sole made of lightweight materials.—
Stephen Garner,
Footwear News,
9 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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This is a wordier way of explaining the obvious downstream effects of paying for better players.—
Grant Brisbee,
New York Times,
4 Feb. 2026
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With Payton and Nix, in particular, part of the rationale was to get some of Payton’s most wordy calls on the band so the coach could give short-hand to Nix, creating a couple of extra seconds for the quarterback to spit out a call that might be15 or 20 words long.—
Parker Gabriel,
Denver Post,
7 Jan. 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Circumlocutory.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/circumlocutory. Accessed 12 Feb. 2026.
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