grandiloquent

English

WOTD – 7 November 2007

Etymology

From Middle French grandiloquent, from Latin grandiloquus, from grandis (“great, full”) + loquēns, present participle of loquor (“I speak”). Compare eloquent.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation, US) IPA^(key): /ɡɹænˈdɪl.ə.kwənt/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Adjective

grandiloquent (comparative more grandiloquent, superlative most grandiloquent)

1. (of a person, their language or writing) Given to using language in a showy way by using an excessive number of difficult words to impress others; bombastic; turgid.
   • 1898, William Graham Sumner, “The Conquest of the United States by Spain”, in War and Other Essays, Yale, published 1911, page 324:

     The American people believe that they have a free country, and we are treated to grandiloquent speeches about our flag and our reputation for freedom and enlightenment.

Synonyms

• (overly wordy or elaborate): See Thesaurus:verbose

Derived terms

• grandiloquently
• ungrandiloquent

Related terms

• grandiloquacity
• grandiloquence
• grandiloquism
• grandiloquize
• grandiloquous
• grandiloquy
• magniloquent
• splendiloquent

Translations

overly wordy or elaborate

Bulgarian: надут (bg) (nadut), високопарен (bg) (visokoparen) Catalan: grandiloqüent (ca) Czech: velkohubý (cs) Finnish: mahtipontinen (fi), suurieleinen (fi) French: grandiloquent (fr) Greek: μεγαλόστομος (el) (megalóstomos), μεγαλορρήμονας (megalorrímonas), πομπώδης (el) (pompódis) Hungarian: szónokias (hu), dagályos (hu) Latin: grandiloquus Polish: górnolotny (pl), grandilokwentny Portuguese: grandiloquente (pt) Russian: напы́щенный (ru) (napýščennyj) Spanish: grandilocuente (es), grandílocuo (es), altisonante (es), altísono (es), rimbombante (es)

French

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin grandiloquus, remodelled after éloquent.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɡʁɑ̃.di.lɔ.kɑ̃/

• Audio (Canada (Shawinigan)):

  (file)

• Audio (France (Vosges)):

  (file)

Adjective

grandiloquent (feminine grandiloquente, masculine plural grandiloquents, feminine plural grandiloquentes)

1. grandiloquent

   Synonym: pompeux

Related terms

• grandiloquence

Further reading

• “grandiloquent”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.