fulsome English · revision 95

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ˈfʊlsəm/^(Wiktionary)

+ * Respelling: ''fo͝olˈsəm''^(AHD)^(RHWU)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ A Middle English compound of ''ful'' “full” + ''-som'',^(Etymonline)^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate) that is, [[af|en|full|-some]].^(RHWU)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ “Abundant, plentiful” (mid-13th century).^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989)^(RHWU)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ From “abundant” the word moved to “plump, well-fed” (mid-14th century), and then to “arousing disgust”, like the feeling of having eaten too much (late 14th century).^(Etymonline) Through the sense “causing nausea” it came to be used of language, “offensive to taste or good manners” (early 15th century), and especially of excessive flattery (1660s).^(Etymonline) The unfavourable senses probably developed partly by association with [[foul]],^(RHWU) and for some centuries they were the only ones in use.^(RHWU) Since the 1960s the original favourable sense has again become common, especially in ''fulsome praise''.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 1250 – “abundant, plentiful”.^(OED 1989)

+ * mid-14th century – “plump, well-fed”.^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989)

+ * late 14th century – “arousing disgust”.^(Etymonline)

+ * c. 1410 – of food, “cloying, surfeiting”.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1660s – “excessively flattering”.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1960s onwards – the favourable sense “abundant” becomes common again.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Adjective===

+ # Excessively or insincerely flattering, as in ''fulsome praise''.^(AHD)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+ # Offensive to good taste, especially through excess.^(AHD)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+ # Abundant, copious; generous in amount or spirit.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[fulsomely]]^(AHD)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+ * [[fulsomeness]]^(AHD)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[full]], [[-some]]^(Etymonline)^(RHWU)

+ * Synonyms: [[effusive]], [[unctuous]] (flattering); [[profuse]] (abundant)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ The favourable use, “abundant”, is etymologically justified,^(AHD) but it is often criticized on the grounds that the word should always suggest excess or offensiveness.^(RHWU) Readers who know the negative sense may suspect insincerity in a phrase like ''fulsome apologies'';^(AHD)^(Wiktionary) ''full'' or ''abundant'' avoids the ambiguity.^(AHD)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}