laconic en · ADJ
Pronunciation
Etymology
From Latin Lacōnicus (“Spartan”), from Ancient Greek Λακωνικός (Lakōnikós, “Laconian”). Laconia was the region inhabited and ruled by the Spartans, who were known for their brevity in speech.
Meanings
-
Of speech or writing, communicative through the use of as few words as possible.
Near-synonym: brief
-
Of a speaker or writer, communicating through the use of as few words as possible.
His sense was strong and his style laconic.
1738, Zachary Grey, An Attempt towards the Character of the Royal Martyr King Charles I:Near-synonyms: taciturn, untalkative, terse, quiet, spartan
I grow laconick even beyond laconicism; for sometimes I return only yes, or no, to questionary or petitionary epistles of half a yard long.
August 17, 1736, Alexander Pope, letter to Jonathan Swift:
-
(Australia, proscribed, sometimes) Laid-back; casual; not intense.
A key player up the other end of the ground is Harris Andrews, who sometimes gets unfairly criticised for his laconic playing style. He desperately cares for this team.
2022 June 15, Donal Wilson, “Mid-season review: Brisbane Lions”, in Roar:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| most laconic | Degree=Sup | lexicographic | |
| laconick | alternative, obsolete | lexicographic | |
| more laconic | Degree=Cmp | lexicographic |
Antonyms
talkative · prolix · chatty · loquacious · bombastic · bombastic · prolix · verbose · loquacious · long-winded · verbose · long-winded
Deriveds
laconicly · unlaconic · laconicism
Relateds
laconism · laconical · laconically
Synonyms
quiet · terse · untalkative · taciturn · concise · lapidary · succinct · pithy · spartan · terse · brief
Translations (53)
bo ཚིག་ཉུང་དོན་བསྡུས་པ (using as few words as possible) · ga gearr-abartha (using as few words as possible) · th กระชับ (using as few words as possible) · ca lacònic (using as few words as possible) · it laconico (using as few words as possible) · th รวบรัด (using as few words as possible) · fi niukkasanainen (using as few words as possible) · fi lyhytsanainen (using as few words as possible) · da kortfattet (using as few words as possible) · ms ringkas (using as few words as possible) · ota وجیز (using as few words as possible) · ro laconic (using as few words as possible) · et lakooniline (using as few words as possible) · hu szófukar (using as few words as possible) · ru немногосло́вный (using as few words as possible) · he לקוני (using as few words as possible) · uk лаконічний (using as few words as possible) · ja 簡潔 (using as few words as possible) · nb lakonisk (using as few words as possible) · bg лаконичен (using as few words as possible) · ru лакони́чный (using as few words as possible) · mk ла́конски (using as few words as possible) · cmn 簡潔 /简洁 (using as few words as possible) · ar وجيز (using as few words as possible) · da lakonisk (using as few words as possible) · th กะทัดรัด (using as few words as possible) · bo ཁ་ཉུང (using as few words as possible) · sh làkōnskī (using as few words as possible) · es lacónico (using as few words as possible) · hu szűkszavú (using as few words as possible) · nn lakonisk (using as few words as possible) · fr laconique (using as few words as possible) · cy laconig (using as few words as possible) · cy byreiriog (using as few words as possible) · pl lakoniczny (using as few words as possible) · fi lakoninen (using as few words as possible) · de einsilbig (using as few words as possible) · hu lakonikus (using as few words as possible) · cs lakonický (using as few words as possible) · th สั้นได้ใจความ (using as few words as possible) · tr veciz (using as few words as possible) · bo ཚིག་ཉུང་དོན་ཚང (using as few words as possible) · pt lacônico (using as few words as possible) · th สั้น (using as few words as possible) · be лаканічны (using as few words as possible) · ht lakonik (using as few words as possible) · el λακωνικός (using as few words as possible) · sv lakonisk (using as few words as possible) · de lakonisch (using as few words as possible) · sh lakòničan (using as few words as possible) · nl laconiek (using as few words as possible) · de wortkarg (using as few words as possible) · pt lacónico (using as few words as possible)