as in rambling
using or containing more words than necessary to express an idea
a person known for habitually transforming brief anecdotes into prolix sagas that exhaust their listeners
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in repetition
the use of too many words to express an idea
prolixity is one of the worst offenses that a writer of any age can commit
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of prolix
Roberta Smith, New York Times, 30 May 2024
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
There’s a hypnotic quality to this freewheeling central section, a sustained charge that falters in some of the more prolix passages around it.
—David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 1 Sep. 2022
A certain type of actor thrives in these prolix circumstances.
—Los Angeles Times, 12 Oct. 2021
Ames’s ruminations on the soul are prolix, philosophical, and profoundly sad.
—Hermione Lee, The New York Review of Books, 22 Oct. 2020
Words, including those of artists themselves—as prolix in their way as critics, curators, and historians—can serve vision but can also deflect from it.
—Barry Schwabsky, ARTnews.com, 3 Sep. 2019
Adjective
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
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
There’s a hypnotic quality to this freewheeling central section, a sustained charge that falters in some of the more prolix passages around it.
—David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 1 Sep. 2022
A certain type of actor thrives in these prolix circumstances.
—Los Angeles Times, 12 Oct. 2021
Ames’s ruminations on the soul are prolix, philosophical, and profoundly sad.
—Hermione Lee, The New York Review of Books, 22 Oct. 2020
Words, including those of artists themselves—as prolix in their way as critics, curators, and historians—can serve vision but can also deflect from it.
—Barry Schwabsky, ARTnews.com, 3 Sep. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for prolix
Adjective
-
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
Noun
-
Through repetition, Dinand does not dilute meaning.—
Sudhir Gupta,
Rolling Stone,
4 Feb. 2026
-
Power is exercised openly, justified retrospectively, and normalized through repetition.—
Alejandro Reyes,
Washington Post,
3 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
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
-
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
-
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
Noun
-
This working prompt injection came only after much trial and error, explaining the verbosity and the detail in it.—
Dan Goodin,
ArsTechnica,
18 Sep. 2025
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The truth is, there is rarely a Merritt Wever or an Adrien Brody in awards speeches—extreme cases of brevity or verbosity that stun both those in the room and at home.—
Shirley Li,
The Atlantic,
15 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
This is a wordier way of explaining the obvious downstream effects of paying for better players.—
Grant Brisbee,
New York Times,
4 Feb. 2026
-
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
Noun
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The repetitiveness of the plot is not helped by the many montages writer-director Yandy Laurens uses as shortcuts, instead of writing scenes that show how the central relationship is developing.—
Murtada Elfadl,
Variety,
15 Dec. 2025
Noun
-
Flatulent describes inflated, pretentious writing; garrulity describes excessive talkativeness.—
Gary Gilson,
Star Tribune,
31 Oct. 2020
Cite this Entry
“Prolix.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/prolix. Accessed 10 Feb. 2026.
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