wordy

Sometimes, less is more. A "wordy" piece of writing or speech isn't necessarily intelligent—it just uses a lot of unnecessary words to get its point across. Think of a friend who tells you a long, winding story about buying groceries when all you wanted to know was if they got milk. That's wordiness in action! A concise writer avoids being wordy; they say what needs saying and then stop. While some people enjoy elaborate language, too much can make your message confusing or boring.

To be "wordy" means using more words than necessary to express an idea. It's not about having a large vocabulary—it's about lacking conciseness. A wordy sentence isn't necessarily wrong, but it could be said much more efficiently. Think of it like packing for a trip: you can fill your suitcase with everything you might need, or you can pack only the essentials. Wordiness is like overpacking—lots of stuff, but not always useful.

Wordy writing often suffers from redundancy (repeating ideas unnecessarily), convoluted sentence structures, and an overuse of qualifiers ("very," "really," "quite"). A good editor will help cut out the fluff and make your message clear and impactful.

The term can apply to both written and spoken language. A wordy politician might give long speeches filled with vague promises, while a wordy email might bury its main point under layers of polite introductions and unnecessary details.

While some styles appreciate elaborate prose (think Victorian novels), in most modern contexts—especially business communication or journalism—being concise is valued over being wordy. So if you find yourself constantly rewriting sentences to make them shorter, you might be a bit…wordy!