Circumlocution

Synonyms

Periphrasis; Pleonasm; Prolix

Definition

Circumlocution is the use of more words than necessary to express what could be said precisely and directly. Frequently present during word-finding difficulties, circumlocutions typically involve production of functional or attributive descriptions in place of content words that cannot be immediately accessed (Benson and Ardila 1996). Examples include saying, “the thing that you use to tell time” instead of “clock” or saying “the thing that is red, white, and blue” instead of “American flag.”

Circumlocution is found in neurotypical individuals who occasionally have a word on the “tip of the tongue,” that is, when the semantics of a needed word can be accessed but not the phonological form. It is also frequently present, however, as a symptom of anomia in individuals with fluent aphasias and cognitive-communication disorders (Davis 2013). In these circumstances, circumlocution can be viewed as both a symptom and a compensatory strategy...