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Added 9 October 2026

terse

/tɜːs/ adjective

In Latin: adductus, contractus Wiktionary

adjective Definition from WordNet 3.1, Princeton University. Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about terse at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

Brief and to the point; effectively cut short.
a crisp retort

Origin

From Latin tersus (“clean, cleansed, rubbed or wiped off; neat, spruce; terse”), perfect passive participle of Latin tergeō, tergō (“to clean, cleanse, rub, wipe, wipe off”).

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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