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πολυλογία

polylogía

G4180 noun

SILEX Entry

Definition

Excessive use of words; verbosity. Denotes the practice of speaking at length, often unnecessarily or repetitively, characterized by an abundance of words or prolonged speech. The core meaning centers on overly abundant verbal expression, especially speech that is verbose rather than concise.

Semantic Range

verbosity, wordiness, prolixity, loquacity, much speaking, long-windedness, empty or vain repetition

Root / Etymology

From the compound of πολύς (much, many) and λόγος (word, speech, account). Formed regularly in Greek to indicate 'talking much' or 'much word'.

Historical & Contextual Notes

πολυλογία is a relatively rare term in ancient Greek, attested chiefly in Hellenistic and later Koine texts. In earlier classical Greek, similar ideas may be expressed by other constructions. In the New Testament, it appears in Matthew 6:7 to denote 'vain repetition' or 'babbling' in prayer—i.e., using many words in a manner seen as superficial or lacking in substance. The Septuagint uses related terms for warnings against excessive or empty speech. Later Greek literature employs the word for 'wordiness' or 'verbose discourse,' often pejoratively. English translation as 'much speaking' or 'prolixity' captures the literal sense but may not fully reflect the negative connotation of empty, ineffective, or showy talk. The term does not connote eloquence but specifically unnecessary or excessive verbal output; see also related terms like φλυαρία (idle talk) and μακρολογία (long-windedness).

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

from a compound of πολύς and λόγος; loquacity, i.e. prolixity:--much speaking.

Root Family

λογ- (dialogismós) — to speak, to reason, to account

Root λογ- to speak, to say, to relate
Strong's Lemma SIBI-P1
G1261 διαλογισμός reasonings
G1677 ἐλλογέω credit to your account
G2127 εὐλογέω to speak well of
G249 ἄλογος irrational ones
G3048 λογία organized communal contributions

Word Forms

1 distinct form

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2 Occurrences
G4180-01 πολυλογίᾳ polulogia N DAT F SG many words to verbosity verbosity 1

Occurrences in Scripture

1 occurrence

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2
G4180-01 Matthew 6:7 πολυλογίᾳ polulogia N DAT F SG many words to verbosity verbosity
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