fulsome
adjective

- excessively complimentary or flattering : effusive

- exceeding the bounds of good taste : overdone

- aesthetically, morally, or generally offensive

- of large size or quantity; generous or abundant

- encompassing all aspects; comprehensive

- being full and well developed

Merriam-Webster, Oxford Languages, Dictionary Com

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WORD ORIGIN

The etymology of "fulsome" is quite interesting, as the word has undergone significant changes in meaning over time:

"Fulsome" originated in Middle English—dating back to the 13th century—and meant "abundant" or "plentiful”.

Over time, the meaning shifted. In the 14th century, it came to mean "plump" or "shapely", and later it developed the negative connotations of "cloying" or "excessive”. By the 19th century, it was primarily used to express the disapproval of excessive praise or flattery.

In the 20th century, the original meaning of "abundant" saw a revival, which has now led to some confusion and debate about the proper usage of fulsome.

Today, "fulsome" can have both positive and negative connotations. It can mean "of large size or quantity; comprehensive; generous; abundant" ... and it can also mean "excessive, overdone", or "excessively complimentary" as in our OWAD example today.

The etymological journey of "fulsome" demonstrates how words can evolve and change meaning over time, sometimes leading to multiple, even contradictory, interpretations in modern usage.

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VICTORIAN PRAISES

Victorian wit was a veritable art form. Here's a selection of wonderfully fulsome compliments in the style of 19th-century English—try them out on your friends,... if you dare!

- “By Jove, your lexical prowess is so magnificent it could make the Oxford English Dictionary blush with inadequacy!"

- “Good heavens! Your mastery of language is so complete it could tame the wildest of grammatical beasts!"

- “My good man, your verbal volleys are so precise they could split the finest hair on the head of semantics!"

-  "Gracious me! Your linguistic libations are so intoxicating they could make even the most teetotal grammarian giddy with delight!"

- “By the beard of Merlin! Your wordsmithery is so magical it could transmute the basest lead into purest verbal gold!"

- “Heavens above! Your articulatory apparatus must surely be blessed by the gods of elocution themselves!"

- “By the quill of Byron! Your poetic prowess is so profound it could make the most prosaic pudding sing like a nightingale!"

- “I do declare, your verbal vivacity is so vigorous it could breathe life into the dustiest tomes of the British Library!"

- “By the beard of Darwin! Your verbal evolution is so advanced it could represent the pinnacle of linguistic natural selection!"

- “Great Scott! Your verbal volleys are so precise they could strike the bullseye of understanding from a thousand yards!"

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SYNONYMS

adulatory, apple-polishing, blandishment, blarney, bootlicking, brown-nosing, buttering up, cloying, effusive, exaggerated, excessive, extravagant, fawning, flattering, FULSOME, groveling, gushing, hagiographic, honeyed (words), hyperbolic, ingratiating, insincere, insincere flattery, kowtowing, laid on with a trowel, laying it on thick, lavish praise, mealy-mouthed, nauseating, obsequious, oily, oleaginous, over-appreciative, over-enthusiastic, over-effusive, over-generous, over-the-top, overblown, overdone, overpraised, overstated, profuse, saccharine, schmoozing, servile, sickly sweet, silver-tongued, slimy, smarmy, smooth-talking, soapy, soft-soaping, sucking up, sycophantic, toadying, unctuous, wheedling

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SMUGGLE OWAD into a sentence, say something like:

"She rolled her eyes at his FULSOME compliments about her outfit."

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