Word of the Day

: May 20, 2021

copious

adjective KOH-pee-us

What It Means

1 a : yielding something abundantly

b : plentiful in number

2 a : full of thought, information, or matter

b : profuse or exuberant in words, expression, or style

3 : present in large quantity : taking place on a large scale

copious in Context

Jacqueline took copious notes during the long lecture and shared them with the rest of her study group.

"Her grandmother had trimmed her lashes when she was a baby to 'stimulate growth,' and it seemed to have worked, for now she was blessed with a flurry of thick, black lashes that other girls could only achieve with copious layers of mascara, and not even then." — Susie Yang, White Ivy, 2020

Did You Know?

Copious dates to the 14th century, during the era of English known as Middle English. Like most terms entering the language then, it comes ultimately from Latin, from the word copia, meaning "abundance." (Cornucopia combines this same root with cornu, meaning "horn," to form the phrase "horn of plenty.") Latin copia combines the prefix co- and -op, * ops, meaning "wealth" or "power." (That asterisk means that ops is assumed to have existed or has been reconstructed by means of comparative evidence.) The latter also features in the history of opulent, meaning "wealthy" or "luxurious."