prolixity

Prolixity is the quality or condition of using an excessive length of words to convey information, often characterized by sentence length, tangential digressions, and redundant detail. In writing and speech, prolixity can obscure meaning and impede comprehension by forcing readers or listeners to contend with superfluous material rather than the core message.

It derives from Latin prolixus, meaning stretched out, from pro- forward and laxus loose, and entered English in the 16th century. In rhetorical theory and editing, the term is used to describe a style that fails to prioritize clarity and economy.

Common domains include administrative, legal, and scholarly prose, as well as public speaking, where long sentences, nominalizations, redundancies, and excessive qualifiers signal prolixity. Indicators include repetitive ideas, verbose phrases (for example, using "at this point in time" instead of "now"), and frequent parenthetical asides.

Prolixity can reduce reader engagement, hinder comprehension, and waste time. It may also reflect overly cautious or pretentious aims and can undermine credibility if the audience suspects the writer is masking a lack of substance.

To avoid prolixity, writers and speakers may aim for brevity: define purpose clearly, edit for conciseness, favor active voice, cut redundancies, replace multiword phrases with single terms, and reorganize text to emphasize essential points. Clear structure, transitional cues, and empirical or concrete details can improve clarity without sacrificing completeness.