Definition of SesquipedalianSesquipedalian: A long polysyllabic word that means having many syllables or using long words. From the Latin sesqui- meaning one and a half times + ped, pes meaning foot. In Ars Poetica, the Roman poet Horace cautioned young poets against using "sesquipedalia verba" -- "words a foot and a half long." For example, Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanosconiosis. Last Editorial Review: 9/20/2012
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