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corpulent
adjective
Did you know?
The Duchess of Windsor may have said that you can never be too rich or too thin, but that's a rather modern point of view. In earlier times in Europe, being overweight was considered a sign of wealth and well-being, as demonstrated by the corpulence of many European kings. Still today, corpulence is thought to be superior to thinness in some of the world's cultures. But corpulent and corpulence are less often used than they once were, and we're now probably more likely to say "obese" and "obesity".
Synonyms
Examples of corpulent in a Sentence
Word History
Middle English, borrowed from Middle French & Latin; Middle French, borrowed from Latin corpulentus, from corpus "body" + -ulentus "having in quantity, full of" — more at midriff
14th century, in the meaning defined above
Dictionary Entries Near corpulent
Cite this Entry
“Corpulent.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/corpulent. Accessed 30 Nov. 2024.
Kids Definition
corpulent
adjectiveMore from Merriam-Webster on corpulent
Nglish: Translation of corpulent for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of corpulent for Arabic Speakers
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