effusive

Borrowed from Medieval Latin effūsīvus, 1660s.^[1]

• IPA^(key): /ɪˈfjuːsɪv/

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effusive (comparative more effusive, superlative most effusive)

1. Gushy; unrestrained, extravagant or excessive (in emotional expression).

   Synonym: gushy

   Coordinate term: fulsome

   effusive praise

   • 1997, David Foster Wallace, “A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again”, in A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again, Kindle edition, Little, Brown Book Group:

     All week I’ve found myself doing everything I can to distance myself in the crew’s eyes from the bovine herd I’m part of, to somehow unimplicate myself: I eschew cameras and sunglasses and pastel Caribbeanwear; I make a big deal of carrying my own cafeteria tray and am effusive in my thanks for the slightest service.

   • 2023 March 8, Gareth Dennis, “The Reshaping of things to come...”, in RAIL, number 978, page 47:

     While he is reasonably effusive about inter-city travel, he is heavily disparaging of all types of stopping service, including those on otherwise busy main lines. His analysis is not entirely unsound, and he tackles some of the questions head on.

   • 2026 April 5, Howard LaFranchi, “Trump’s war in Iran puts new strain on alliances. Why this time it’s different.”, in The Christian Science Monitor, Boston, Massachusetts: Christian Science Publishing Society, →ISSN, →OCLC:

     [US president Donald] Trump has developed a warm relationship with [NATO Secretary-General Mark] Rutte, who courted the president at last June’s NATO summit with effusive flattery and commitments to boosting European members’ “fair share” of alliance spending.

     (Can we archive this URL?)

2. (archaic) Pouring, spilling out freely; overflowing.
   • 1726, Homer, “Book XXII”, in [Alexander Pope], transl., The Odyssey of Homer. […], volume V, London: […] Bernard Lintot, →OCLC:

     wash'd with the effusive wave

3. (geology, of igneous rock) Extrusive; having solidified after being poured out as molten lava.

effusive

1. feminine plural of effusivo