> ## Content Index
> Fetch the complete content index at: https://goodoil.news/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further.

# The BFD Word of the Day
- URL: https://goodoil.news/the-bfd-word-of-the-day-457/
- Published: 2021-04-29T18:15:00.000Z
- Updated: 2021-03-18T18:12:55.000Z
- Author: David Theobald
- Tags: Gallery, #wp, #wp-post, #Import 2024-07-17 02:14

The word for today is…

circumlocution (noun) –

1 : the use of an unnecessarily large number of words to express an idea  
2 : evasion in speech

Source : [Merriam -Webster](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/circumlocution?ref=goodoil.news)

Etymology : In The King’s English, grammarian H.W. Fowler advised, “Prefer the single word to the circumlocution.” Alas, that good advice was not followed by the framers of “circumlocution.” They actually used two terms in forming that word for unnecessarily verbose prose or speech. But their choices were apt; circumlocution derives from the Latin circum-, meaning “around,” and locutio, meaning “speech – so it literally means “roundabout speech.” Since the 15th century, English writers have used “circumlocution” with disdain, naming a thing to stop, or better yet, to avoid altogether. Charles Dickens even used it to satirize political runarounds when he created the fictional Circumlocution Office, a government department that delayed the dissemination of information and just about everything else.

***If you enjoyed this BFD word of the day please consider sharing it with your friends and, especially, your children.***