sententious

adjective

sen·ten·tious sen-ˈten(t)-shəs How to pronounce sententious (audio)

: given to or abounding in aphoristic expression

: given to or abounding in excessive moralizing

: terse, aphoristic, or moralistic in expression : pithy, epigrammatic

sententiously adverb

sententiousness noun

Did you know?

Nowadays, "sententious" is usually uncomplimentary, implying banality, oversimplification, and excessive moralizing. But that hasn't always been the case, nor is it universally so even now. The original Middle English sense of "sententious" was "full of meaning," a meaning adopted from Latin sententiosus (from sententia, meaning "sentence" or "maxim"). In Modern English, too, "sententious" has sometimes referred to what is full of significance and expressed tersely. Or sometimes "sententious" simply suggests an affinity for aphorisms, as when it refers to the likes of Benjamin Franklin's Poor Richard (of almanac fame), the homespun philosopher given to such statements as "early to bed and early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise."

Example Sentences

a smug and sententious writer a sententious crank who has written countless letters to the editor about the decline in family values

Recent Examples on the Web Instead each event—from lethal accidents to vicious murders to Category 5 hurricanes—is immediately sorted into its prelabeled moral narrative file, each one full of similarly useful sententious parables.

Gerard Baker, WSJ, 30 May 2022 Dialogue is rendered in the pseudo-profound pronouncements that have become the sententious lingua franca of the hero’s quest.

Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 21 Apr. 2022 This melodramatic narrative fits right into American indie filmmaker Kelly Reichardt’s domain, but Francis Lee is a less sententious proselytizer for gay life.

Armond White, National Review, 13 Nov. 2020 These are the sententious keynote presentations, used to dazzle investors or recruit employees, that try to get a startup to seem like a holy mission.

Wired, 22 Oct. 2019 What’s more, Charles’s sententious interpretation of noblesse oblige leaves him open to the charge of overstepping the constitutional boundaries of his position.

Zoë Heller, The New Yorker, 31 Mar. 2017

sententious

adjective

as in moralizing

marked by or given to preaching moral values a sententious crank who has written countless letters to the editor about the decline in family values

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

moralizing
sermonic
didactic
moralistic
instructive
homiletical
homiletic
preachy
dogmatical
admonitory
prescriptive
dogmatic
cautionary
advisory
admonishing
enlightening
self-righteous
holier-than-thou

as in concise

marked by the use of few words to convey much information or meaning memoirs that are filled with sententious observations on love, marriage, and happiness

Synonyms & Similar Words

concise
brief
summary
pithy
aphoristic
epigrammatic
succinct
laconic
blunt
terse
telegraphic
curt
compendious
monosyllabic
short
capsule
compact
condensed
apothegmatic
brusque
abrupt
crisp
elliptic
elliptical
shortened
thumbnail
abbreviated
meaningful
abridged
snippy
brusk
curtailed
snippety
substantial
meaty
well-turned
significant

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

prolix
wordy
verbose
circumlocutory
rambling
circuitous
repetitious
redundant
tautological
diffuse
pleonastic
tautologous
windy
long-winded
exaggerated
enlarged
inflated
supplemented
expanded
embroidered
embellished

单词	sententious
释义	sententious adjective sen·ten·tious sen-ˈten(t)-shəs 1 a : given to or abounding in aphoristic expression b : given to or abounding in excessive moralizing 2 : terse, aphoristic, or moralistic in expression : pithy, epigrammatic sententiously adverb sententiousness noun Did you know? Nowadays, "sententious" is usually uncomplimentary, implying banality, oversimplification, and excessive moralizing. But that hasn't always been the case, nor is it universally so even now. The original Middle English sense of "sententious" was "full of meaning," a meaning adopted from Latin sententiosus (from sententia, meaning "sentence" or "maxim"). In Modern English, too, "sententious" has sometimes referred to what is full of significance and expressed tersely. Or sometimes "sententious" simply suggests an affinity for aphorisms, as when it refers to the likes of Benjamin Franklin's Poor Richard (of almanac fame), the homespun philosopher given to such statements as "early to bed and early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise." Synonyms didactic homiletic homiletical moralistic moralizing preachy sermonic See all Synonyms & Antonyms Example Sentences a smug and sententious writer a sententious crank who has written countless letters to the editor about the decline in family values Recent Examples on the Web Instead each event—from lethal accidents to vicious murders to Category 5 hurricanes—is immediately sorted into its prelabeled moral narrative file, each one full of similarly useful sententious parables. Gerard Baker, WSJ, 30 May 2022 Dialogue is rendered in the pseudo-profound pronouncements that have become the sententious lingua franca of the hero’s quest. Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 21 Apr. 2022 This melodramatic narrative fits right into American indie filmmaker Kelly Reichardt’s domain, but Francis Lee is a less sententious proselytizer for gay life. Armond White, National Review, 13 Nov. 2020 These are the sententious keynote presentations, used to dazzle investors or recruit employees, that try to get a startup to seem like a holy mission. Wired, 22 Oct. 2019 What’s more, Charles’s sententious interpretation of noblesse oblige leaves him open to the charge of overstepping the constitutional boundaries of his position. Zoë Heller, The New Yorker, 31 Mar. 2017 Word History Etymology Middle English, full of meaning, from Latin sententiosus, from sententia sentence, maxim First Known Use 1509, in the meaning defined at sense 1a sententious adjective 1 as in moralizing marked by or given to preaching moral values a sententious crank who has written countless letters to the editor about the decline in family values Synonyms & Similar Words Relevance moralizing sermonic didactic moralistic instructive homiletical homiletic preachy dogmatical admonitory prescriptive dogmatic cautionary advisory admonishing enlightening self-righteous holier-than-thou 2 as in concise marked by the use of few words to convey much information or meaning memoirs that are filled with sententious observations on love, marriage, and happiness Synonyms & Similar Words concise brief summary pithy aphoristic epigrammatic succinct laconic blunt terse telegraphic curt compendious monosyllabic short capsule compact condensed apothegmatic brusque abrupt crisp elliptic elliptical shortened thumbnail abbreviated meaningful abridged snippy brusk curtailed snippety substantial meaty well-turned significant Antonyms & Near Antonyms prolix wordy verbose circumlocutory rambling circuitous repetitious redundant tautological diffuse pleonastic tautologous windy long-winded exaggerated enlarged inflated supplemented expanded embroidered embellished See More
随便看	grandioser grandiosest grandiosities grandiosity grandioso grandisonant Grandisonian grandisonous grandity grandkid grandkids grandlier grandliest grandly grandma grandmamas grandmammas grandmammy grandmas grandmaster key grandmasters grandmaternal grandmother grandmother clock grandmother-in-law

sententious

adjective

Did you know?

Synonyms

Example Sentences

Word History

adjective