at length
47
4.1
- idiom
:
extensamente
- We discussed this at length before we voted.
- discuss at length
- quote at length
- speak at length
I've spoken to my boys at length about this.
- I've spoken to my boys at length about this.
- I say this at length in my book, and I reinforce it here.
- And you went on about this at length last year when your youngest son was a senior.
- Look, we've documented at length on this show what is happening to Jews in America.
- I've considered them at length through some of my own challenges and difficulties and pains.
- To address them, we must talk to each other, not briefly every now and then, but often and at length and with purpose.
- So we need to talk to our doctors and we need to talk to them early and often and at length.
- But as I talk about at length in my book, Love Life, connection doesn't simply supersede everything else.
- Well, when the air, we're going to talk about this at length in the course, but when the air expands like that, it cools and a cloud formed in our chamber.
- They talked at length about this spectrum of eating butter, lard, ghee is your mainstay of fats in the diet.
- You now have determined and you've at length explained why we don't have free will.
- And it will, I know, be debated and discussed at length.
- Every single thing that we're doing with Reggie is being filmed at length and being uploaded to my Perfect Puppy course.
Examples
-
One is particularly important for our purposes; we will discuss it at length in the next section.
Academic text (2017) -
I have reflected on this case at length, ladies and gentlemen.
-
I could go on at length about those, you know, move on.
-
You can talk at length about things and start putting things together on the fly.
-
Before his death last year, Ben spoke at length about his experiences.
Academic text (2011) -
The American model was described at length in several papers when the bill was being discussed.
Academic text (1990) -
At twenty, he suffered a nervous breakdown, described at length in the same book.
Academic text (2011) -
We discussed Mr. Kraftt's operation at length.
-
Well, Holly, I've spoken with Mr. Governor at length and we've come to an understanding.
-
We discussed the project at length to ensure everyone understood their roles.
Synonyms
1
6.4
For a long time and with too many details
To speak or write using too many words so people lose interest
Antonyms
How Long
Surface Forms
Morphology
at + length
The phrase combines 'at' (locating in time) with 'length' (a span or duration), so a learner who knows both words can plausibly infer the basic sense 'for a long time'. However, the extended meaning 'in great detail / thoroughly' and the somewhat formal/fixed nature of the adverbial collocation are not fully predictable without exposure, making the relation only partially transparent.
Etymology
The phrase at length may come from the image of stretching something out to its full length. When a story or talk is stretched out like that, it lasts a long time and gives many details, so the phrase means 'for a long time' or 'in great detail'.