Meaning & use
circumlocutory
Last updated
Meaning
adjectivecomparableformaldisapproving
Using many words when fewer would do; not speaking or writing directly.
Grammar: Can be used before a noun (a circumlocutory style) or after a linking verb (the style is circumlocutory).
Patterns
- circumlocutory language
- circumlocutory style
- be circumlocutory
His circumlocutory answer avoided the real question.
The report was criticized for its circumlocutory style.
She tends to be circumlocutory when she is nervous.
Word forms
| comparative | more circumlocutory |
|---|---|
| superlative | most circumlocutory |
Common combinations
- circumlocutory language
- Legal documents are often full of circumlocutory language.
- circumlocutory answer
- The politician gave a circumlocutory answer to the simple question.
- circumlocutory style
- Her circumlocutory style makes her writing hard to follow.
Synonyms and how they differ
- wordy
- More common and less formal; it simply means using too many words, while 'circumlocutory' emphasizes avoiding directness.
- roundabout
- Informal; describes indirect speech or action, but can also refer to physical routes.
- verbose
- Formal and means using more words than needed, often in speech or writing; similar but does not always imply evasion.
Opposites
Word family
- circumlocution noun
- The use of many words to say something simple; an indirect way of speaking.
- circumlocutious adjective
- A rarer variant of 'circumlocutory' with the same meaning.
Commonly confused: circumlocutory or circuitous?
circumlocutory vs circuitous
Circuitous means indirect in route or course (a circuitous path); circumlocutory is about indirect language.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'circumlocutory' correctly?
Choose one answer.
'Circumlocutory' describes speech or writing that uses too many words. Option 1 is about a road, which would be 'circuitous'; option 2 uses it as a verb, which it is not; option 3 uses it as a noun.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “circumlocutory”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.