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Glite Dictionary
🌐 To spread widely 💡 Spread out 📝 Wordy or unclear
diffuse

diffuse

1 7.1
Long and not clear in speaking or writing
  • adjective
  • /dɪˈfjus/
translation icon : verboso
  • Her writing style is often diffuse, with long sentences that could be more concise.
  • more diffuse
  • rather diffuse

Examples

  • Therefore, explanations can range from being wide-ranging and diffuse, at times even illogical, to being well-reasoned and tightly constructed.

    Academic text (2006)

  • The civilian professional solves specific problems (outcome-oriented), in contrast to the diffuse functioning of the military professional (process-oriented).

    Academic text (1994)

  • But it was a diffuse anger that I really had no good reason for.

    Academic text (2009)

  • All human studies are diffuse, but modern verse study has been especially so.

    Academic text (1993)

  • In short, professionals see their task as a calling and have diffuse jobs that they perform more or less autonomously.

    Academic text (1994)

  • Both authors may have systematized a possibly quite diffuse tradition for their own ends.

    Academic text (1996)

  • A general silence fell until my grandmother offered a few cheery and diffuse platitudes.

    Fiction book (1994)

  • By what means can educators distill the essence of their often diffuse visions?

    Academic text (1991)

  • The professor's lecture was so diffuse that many students struggled to find the main point.

  • The report was criticized for being diffuse, lacking the clarity needed to convey its findings.

Synonyms

rambling
vsdiffuse
33 5.5

Long confused speech or writing that is hard to follow

keeps a loose, spread out style rather than being disorderly
wordy
vsdiffuse
8 3.7

Using more words than needed makes the meaning hard to understand

spreads ideas across many parts instead of using fewer words

Antonyms

concise
37 4.2

Using few words to give important information clearly

succinct
18 6.4

Short and clear, using only a few words

Compounds

diffuse nebula
  • Specialized
9.1

A cloud of gas and dust lit by nearby stars, seen as a faint hazy patch in the sky

How Wordy

wordy
8 3.7
diffuse
1 7.1
concise
37 4.2
succinct
18 6.4

Surface Forms

diffuse positive
diffuser comparative
diffusest superlative

Etymology

A helpful way to remember diffuse (adjective meaning wordy or not clear) is to imagine someone 'pouring out' too many words everywhere; the roots dis- 'away' and fundere 'to pour' give the idea of spreading so the main point is lost. That's why a diffuse speech or text feels long and hard to follow.