- Today's Word
Cursory
KUR-suh-ree
Definition
- (adjective) Done quickly and without enough attention to detail; superficial.
Example
He gave the contract only a cursory glance before signing, which later proved to be a costly mistake.
Fun Fact
“Cursory” comes from the Latin cursor, meaning “runner,” which reflects its association with speed. While efficiency is valuable, a cursory approach can sometimes lead to errors—whether it’s skimming an important email, rushing through an exam, or speed-reading a recipe and realizing too late that you needed baking soda instead of baking powder!
(adjective) Prone to speaking at excessive length about trivial or loosely connected subjects; tiresomely talkative.
The garrulous professor spent so long on his opening anecdote that he never actually reached the lecture — and somehow, nobody minded.
Garrulous derives from the Latin garrulus, meaning “talkative” or “chattering,” rooted in garrire — “to chatter” or “to babble.” The same root gives us gargle, both words sharing the sense of sound produced loosely and without great purpose. It entered English in the 17th century, used to describe the kind of talker who fills every silence not because they have something to say but because silence itself is intolerable to them.