as in rambling
using or containing more words than necessary to express an idea
a writer whose penchant for pleonastic phrasings would suggest that he is in dire need of a hard-nosed editor
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pleonastic
Adjective
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Instead, DeSantis unleashed a rambling recap of the past seven years, with plenty of unsourced statistics, claims of victory that aren’t supported by reality, and wording often designed to obfuscate the most controversial parts of his tenure.—
Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board,
The Orlando Sentinel,
14 Jan. 2026 -
Day trips to Amalfi-style Taormina are well-advised for those who have yet to gawp at its clifftop panoramas across the Mediterranean or its film star hotels, as are jaunts to the rambling flea markets and splendidly scruffy trattorias of nearby Catania.—
Rosalyn Wikeley,
Condé Nast Traveler,
10 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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The measure’s lead proponent, the Service Employees International Union, sees the threat of an exodus as exaggerated.—
MIchael R. Blood,
Fortune,
14 Jan. 2026
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But current and former leaders of foster care agencies told the Tampa Bay Times last year that the claims were exaggerated or false, and that the Hope Florida program was duplicating existing efforts in child welfare.—
Alexandra Glorioso,
Miami Herald,
13 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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Lopez describes her daughter as an energetic, talkative child who speaks both English and Spanish.—
Leondra Head,
CBS News,
8 Jan. 2026
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Then, like now, people were very talkative.—
Gisela Salim-Peyer,
The Atlantic,
6 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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The approach avoids reliance on a single lidar by layering redundant perception systems.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
8 Jan. 2026
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By using the latest design, HGP will have a much more advanced reactor with a simpler, more reliable design and layers of redundant, passive safety systems.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
4 Jan. 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
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Cite this Entry
“Pleonastic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pleonastic. Accessed 18 Jan. 2026.
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