sententious means using as few words as possible; pithy and concise. It carries an Arena rating of 1586, earned across 5 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, sententious ranks #2,162 of 17,127 for Words That Escaped Their Books, #2,512 of 17,104 for Most Storied Words, #2,813 of 17,134 for Most Malleable Words, #3,693 of 17,138 for Most Incisive Words.
sententious is pronounced /sɛnˈtɛn.ʃəs/.
Why “sententious” is a great word
Given to expressing strong opinions or moral judgments in a concise, pithy, and often self-righteously aphoristic manner. From Latin sententiōsus, from sententia ("opinion, thought, maxim"), first attested in English in the mid-15th century. Unlike "concise," which is neutrally brief, or "aphoristic," which can be cleverly profound, "sententious" is pithiness turned preacher, wisdom worn thin by sanctimony. It is the guest who proclaims a stitch in time saves nine while watching you mend a tear, the colleague who interrupts to observe that honesty is the best policy, the weight of judgment folded into a single crisp sentence—language not shared, but imposed, like a warm stone placed deliberately in your palm until you feel its heat as reproof.
Etymology
From Latin sententiōsus, from sententia (“opinion, purpose”).
adj
- Using as few words as possible; pithy and concise.
- Tending to use aphorisms or maxims; especially, to such an extent as to engage in trite moralizing, even self-righteously so.e.g.“His sententious remarks quickly bored the audience.”
- Full of meaning.
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
Words closest in meaning
By meaning, not spelling — each word's AI semantic fingerprint, nearest first.
- sententiousness 79% match — The state or condition of being sententious. vs sententious →
- sententiosity 71% match — The quality or state of being sententious. vs sententious →
- apothegmatic 67% match — Relating to, or in the manner of, an apothegm; sententious; pithy. vs sententious →
- apothegmatical 66% match — Relating to, or in the manner of, an apothegm; sententious; pithy. vs sententious →
- laconically 61% match — In a terse manner, given to using few words. vs sententious →
- pithy 60% match — Concise and meaningful. vs sententious →
- aphoristic 60% match — Of, relating to, or containing aphorisms, epigrams, or maxims; gnomic. vs sententious →
- terse 60% match — Of speech or style: brief, concise, to the point. vs sententious →