Antonyms for fulsome


Grammar : Adj
Spell : foo l-suh m, fuhl-
Phonetic Transcription : ˈfʊl səm, ˈfʌl-


Definition of fulsome

Origin :
  • Middle English compound of ful "full" (see full (adj.)) + -som (see -some (1)). Sense evolved from "abundant, full" (mid-13c.) to "plump, well-fed" (mid-14c.) to "overgrown, overfed" (1640s) and thus, of language, "offensive to taste or good manners" (1660s). Since the 1960s, however, it commonly has been used in its original, favorable sense, especially in fulsome praise. Related: Fulsomely; fulsomeness.
  • adj sickening or excessive behavior
Example sentences :
  • He is critical, but not captious; laudatory, but not fulsome.
  • Extract from : « Punch, or the London Charivari, Vol. 147, November 18, 1914 » by Various
  • His praise was as close to fulsome flattery as it could be and not overstep the mark.
  • Extract from : « Cap'n Dan's Daughter » by Joseph C. Lincoln
  • "Blaw his lug," to praise a person in an extravagant or fulsome manner.
  • Extract from : « The Proverbs of Scotland » by Alexander Hislop
  • It was praised with the most fulsome adulation; assailed with the most violent condemnation.
  • Extract from : « The Octopus » by Frank Norris
  • No adulation was too fulsome for her, no flattery of her beauty too gross.
  • Extract from : « History of the English People » by John Richard Green
  • If the air of the streets be fulsome, then fields be at hand.
  • Extract from : « Fifteen Chapters of Autobiography » by George William Erskine Russell
  • Mrs Moffatt was talking about her, gushing over her, in fulsome phrases.
  • Extract from : « Flaming June » by Mrs. George de Horne Vaizey
  • With so much suffering in the world, how fulsome seems that gay music!
  • Extract from : « Red Men and White » by Owen Wister
  • And flesh that is Tidie, to terme it rather, Fatte: then Fulsome.
  • Extract from : « A Renaissance Courtesy-book » by Giovanni Della Casa
  • This may sound like flattery, like the fulsome praise of the penny-a-line puffer.
  • Extract from : « Jungle Folk » by Douglas Dewar

Synonyms for fulsome

Based on : Thesaurus.com - Gutenberg.org - Dictionary.com - Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019