Vocabulary Mnemonics

The dictionaries define grandiloquent as “pompous or extravagant in language.” “Using complicated language to impress.”

These definitions make grandiloquence out to be a bad thing, but here at Vocabulary Mnemonics we aspire to it. We long for the days when speech was hifalutin, bombastic, even pretentious.

These days, the most common words we hear are “like” and “f***.”

Let’s bring back grandiloquence!

The easiest way to remember its meaning is to break it in half. “Grand,” of course, means big and impressive. “Loq” comes from the Latin word “loqui” which means “speak.” We find the same root in eloquent (being well spoken), loquacious (talking a lot), and more.

Put “grand” and “loq” together and you get “impressive speech.”

How can you use it in a sentence? It’s usually used to describe the way someone talks.

“The president gave grandiloquent speeches.”

“The general talked about the Great War in grandiloquent terms.”