Synonyms of wordy

wordy

adjective

ˈwər-dē 

1

as in rambling

using or containing more words than necessary to express an idea

her writing style is far too wordy for my tastes

Synonyms & Similar Words

• rambling
• talkative
• prolix
• verbose
• exaggerated
• long-winded
• communicative
• circuitous
• redundant
• pleonastic
• conversational
• diffuse
• garrulous
• circumlocutory
• windy
• logorrheic
• talky
• loquacious
• repetitious
• voluble
• chatty
• periphrastic
• tautological
• tautologous
• bombastic
• gabby
• gaseous
• grandiloquent
• gassy
• hifalutin
• embroidered
• embellished
• highfalutin

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• concise
• succinct
• pithy
• terse
• short
• brief
• compact
• crisp
• summary
• sententious
• epigrammatic
• aphoristic
• abbreviated
• compendious
• condensed
• blunt
• abridged
• laconic
• brusque
• curt
• abrupt
• shortened
• snippy
• brusk

2

as in rhetoric

of or relating to words or language

the neighborhood dispute escalated into a wordy war conducted through angry letters to the editor in the local paper

Synonyms & Similar Words

• rhetoric
• verbal
• linguistic
• communicative
• linguistical
• rhetorical
• lexical
• vocabular
• conversational

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• nonverbal
• nonlinguistic
• nonlexical

Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective wordy differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of wordy are diffuse, prolix, and verbose. While all these words mean "using more words than necessary to express thought," wordy may also imply loquaciousness or garrulity.

a wordy speech

When would diffuse be a good substitute for wordy?

The synonyms diffuse and wordy are sometimes interchangeable, but diffuse stresses lack of compactness and pointedness of style.

diffuse memoirs that are so many shaggy-dog stories

When is it sensible to use prolix instead of wordy?

The words prolix and wordy are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, prolix suggests unreasonable and tedious dwelling on details.

habitually transformed brief anecdotes into prolix sagas

When can verbose be used instead of wordy?

While in some cases nearly identical to wordy, verbose suggests a resulting dullness, obscurity, or lack of incisiveness or precision.

the verbose position papers

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of wordy

In the clip, Harris gave a wordy answer when asked about Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. —Thomas G. Moukawsher, MSNBC Newsweek, 14 Apr. 2025

Payton has said, both with Nix and Russell Wilson before, that the main point of the band is to shorten some of the wordiest play calls. —Parker Gabriel, The Denver Post, 4 Mar. 2025

A week after the Succession alum made a throwaway joke about a certain someone's wordy speeches, Adrien Brody broke the record for longest Oscars acceptance speech. —EW.com, 3 Mar. 2025

Welles gets Dylan comparisons all the time owing to his rough-hewn vocal grain, the harmonica propped up around his face like orthodontic headgear, and a young Bob being the average person’s main reference point for wordy folk music with a bent toward social commentary. —Jack Denton, Vulture, 26 Feb. 2025