sesquipedalian
Use the adjective sesquipedalian to describe a word that's very long and multisyllabic. For example the word sesquipedalian is in fact sesquipedalian.
Sesquipedalian can also be used to describe someone or something that overuses big words, like a philosophy professor or a chemistry textbook. If someone gives a sesquipedalian speech, people often assume it was smart, even if they don’t really know what it was about because they can’t understand the words. Each of those long words is referred to as a sesquipedalia. Antidisestablishmentarianism is a sesquipedalia: in fact it’s the longest non-coined and nontechnical word in the English language.
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a very long word (a foot and a half long)
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synonyms:
sesquipedalia
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type of:
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polysyllabic word, polysyllable
a word of more than three syllables
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polysyllabic word, polysyllable
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given to the overuse of long words“sesquipedalian orators”“this sesquipedalian way of saying one has no money”
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Synonyms:
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pretentious
making claim to or creating an appearance of (often undeserved) importance or distinction
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pretentious
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(of words) long and ponderous; having many syllables“sesquipedalian technical terms”
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synonyms:
polysyllabic
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long
primarily spatial sense; of relatively great or greater than average spatial extension or extension as specified
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long
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A paragraph of text
Copy citationVocabulary lists containing sesquipedalian
Mr. Lemoncello invites teams from across the U.S. to compete in a first-ever Library Olympics, where they must solve puzzles and decipher clues to become champions of literature and his library.
Some words have lots of synonyms, but the words on this list require a phrase or even sentence to replace them. Say exactly what you mean with these evocative words that have no equals.
Coop and his neighbor Jupiter are best friends — despite Coop's unrequited crush. But when Rae moves to town, she threatens to disrupt their friendship.
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