Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

laconic

/ləˈkɑnɪk/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.39 in modern English

Syllables: la-con-ic
IPA: /ləˈkɑnɪk/

11

Scrabble Score

7

Letters

3

Syllables

6

Unique Chars

Meaning

adj

Of speech or writing, communicative through the use of as few words as possible.

adj

Of a speaker or writer, communicating through the use of as few words as possible.

adj

Laid-back; casual; not intense.

Australian usage

adj

Of or relating to ancient Laconia in Greece.

Example Sentences

"Near-synonym: brief"
"Near-synonyms: taciturn, untalkative, terse, quiet, spartan"
"I grow laconick even beyond laconicism; for sometimes I return only yes, or no, to questionary or petitionary epistles of half a yard long."
"His sense was strong and his style laconic."
"A key player up the other end of the ground is Harris Andrews, who sometimes gets unfairly criticised for his laconic playing style. He desperately cares for this team."

Etymology

From Latin Lacōnicus (“Spartan”), from Ancient Greek Λακωνικός (Lakōnikós, “Laconian”). Laconia was the region inhabited and ruled by the Spartans, who were known for their brevity in speech.

Origin

Source language: Latin

Word Breakdown

Root: Lacōnicus, Λακωνικός

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /ləˈkɑnɪk/
British English: /ləˈkɒnɪk/

Usage

Australian usage

Inflected Forms

more laconic (comparative) most laconic (superlative) laconick (alternative, obsolete)

Derived Forms

laconicism laconicly unlaconic

Frequently Paired Words

laconical laconically laconism

Synonyms

terse succinct concise pithy lapidary brief taciturn untalkative quiet spartan

Antonyms

verbose prolix loquacious long-winded bombastic talkative chatty

Rhymes With

electronic chronic iconic sonic ironic tonic demonic harmonic embryonic ionic platonic philharmonic

Questions

How do you pronounce laconic?: The recorded pronunciation is /ləˈkɑnɪk/.
What does laconic mean?: Of speech or writing, communicative through the use of as few words as possible.
Where does laconic come from?: It is traced to Latin.

How to pronounce laconic

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “laconic”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ləˈkɑnɪk/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “laconic”.
Repeat and practice — Say “laconic” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.