Dictionary

effusive en · ADJ

Pronunciation

• /ɪˈfjuːsɪv/
• (Southern-England) audio

Etymology

Borrowed from Medieval Latin effūsīvus, 1660s.

Meanings

1. Gushy; unrestrained, extravagant or excessive (in emotional expression).
   • effusive praise
   • All week I’ve found myself doing everything I can to distance myself in the crew’s eyes from the bovine herd I’m part of, to somehow unimplicate myself: I eschew cameras and sunglasses and pastel Caribbeanwear; I make a big deal of carrying my own cafeteria tray and am effusive in my thanks for the slightest service. 1997, David Foster Wallace, “A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again”, in A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again, Kindle edition, Little, Brown Book Group:
   • While he is reasonably effusive about inter-city travel, he is heavily disparaging of all types of stopping service, including those on otherwise busy main lines. His analysis is not entirely unsound, and he tackles some of the questions head on. 2023 March 8, Gareth Dennis, “The Reshaping of things to come...”, in RAIL, number 978, page 47:
   • [US president Donald] Trump has developed a warm relationship with [NATO Secretary-General Mark] Rutte, who courted the president at last June’s NATO summit with effusive flattery and commitments to boosting European members’ “fair share” of alliance spending. 2026 April 5, Howard LaFranchi, “Trump’s war in Iran puts new strain on alliances. Why this time it’s different.”, in The Christian Science Monitor, Boston, Massachusetts: Christian Science Publishing Society, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 15 Apr 2026:
2. (archaic) Pouring, spilling out freely; overflowing.
   • wash'd with the effusive wave 1726, Homer, “Book XXII”, in [Alexander Pope], transl., The Odyssey of Homer. […], volume V, London: […] Bernard Lintot, →OCLC:
3. (of igneous rock) Extrusive; having solidified after being poured out as molten lava.

Forms

Coordinates

fulsome

Deriveds

uneffusive · effusively · effusiveness · effusivity · overeffusive

Relateds

effusion

Synonyms

gushy

Translations (50)

fi ylitsevuotava (extravagant or excessive) · mi pātere (extravagant or excessive) · de vulkanisch (extrusive; having solidified after being poured out as molten lava) · es emotivo (extravagant or excessive) · sv översvallande (extravagant or excessive) · bg преливащ (pouring, spilling out freely; overflowing) · ru лью́щийся че́рез край (pouring, spilling out freely; overflowing) · tr coşkun (extravagant or excessive) · tr taşkın (extravagant or excessive) · es extrusivo (extrusive; having solidified after being poured out as molten lava) · ca efusiu (extravagant or excessive) · ca efusiu (pouring, spilling out freely; overflowing) · fr effusif (extrusive; having solidified after being poured out as molten lava) · fr émotif (extravagant or excessive) · ca emotiu (extravagant or excessive) · bg несдържан (extravagant or excessive) · ru я́рко вы́раженный (extravagant or excessive) · ru экспанси́вный (extravagant or excessive) · ru бу́рный (extravagant or excessive) · ru переполня́ющий (pouring, spilling out freely; overflowing) · bg експанзивен (extravagant or excessive) · es efusivo (extravagant or excessive) · de überschwänglich (extravagant or excessive) · ru эффузивный (extrusive; having solidified after being poured out as molten lava) · fr généreux (extravagant or excessive) · ru необу́зданный (extravagant or excessive) · ru неуме́ренный (extravagant or excessive) · ru излившийся из вулкана (extrusive; having solidified after being poured out as molten lava) · ro efuziv (extrusive; having solidified after being poured out as molten lava) · fr expansif (extravagant or excessive) · es expansivo (extravagant or excessive) · mi pātere (pouring, spilling out freely; overflowing) · nl buitenissig (extravagant or excessive) · fr effusif (pouring, spilling out freely; overflowing) · da overvældende (extravagant or excessive) · nl excessief (extravagant or excessive) · fi ylenpalttinen (extravagant or excessive) · de Effusiv- (extrusive; having solidified after being poured out as molten lava) · de Ausbruchs- (extrusive; having solidified after being poured out as molten lava) · pt efusivo (extravagant or excessive) · fi ylenmääräinen (extravagant or excessive) · de Erguss- (extrusive; having solidified after being poured out as molten lava) · tr coşkulu (extravagant or excessive) · es rebosante (pouring, spilling out freely; overflowing) · ru несде́ржанный (extravagant or excessive) · fi ekstrusiivinen (extrusive; having solidified after being poured out as molten lava) · ru вулканический (extrusive; having solidified after being poured out as molten lava) · es comunicativo (extravagant or excessive) · el διαχυτικός (extravagant or excessive) · de Extrusiv- (extrusive; having solidified after being poured out as molten lava)