compendious

American  

[kuhm-pen-dee-uhs] / kəmˈpɛn di əs /

adjective

1. of or like a compendium; containing the substance of a subject, often an exclusive subject, in a brief form; concise.

   a compendious history of the world.

   Synonyms:

   packed, succinct, comprehensive, summary

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compendious British  

/ kəmˈpɛndɪəs /

adjective

1. containing or stating the essentials of a subject in a concise form; succinct

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Other Word Forms

• compendiously adverb
• compendiousness noun
• uncompendious adjective

Etymology

Origin of compendious

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English word from Latin word compendiōsus. See compendium, -ous

Example Sentences

These works don’t attempt to replace the compendious authority of traditional biography but, rather, enter into dialogue with it by reflecting more on some facts in a life and its work than on others.

From New York Times • Dec. 15, 2021

Nonetheless, astronomers and astrophysicists came together to write a single compendious paper about the event.

From Science Magazine • Oct. 16, 2017

It may be odd not to find it in this compendious store of resonances .

From The New Yorker • Oct. 11, 2015

What’s so amazing about the book is its compendious nature.

From Salon • Jan. 2, 2013

The complete institutions of which this academy had to boast, even in its outset, are described in a compendious manner by its accomplished secretary, in his work entitled the New Guide, already frequently cited.

From The History of Painting in Italy, Vol. IV (of 6) from the Period of the Revival of the Fine Arts to the End of the Eighteenth Century by Lanzi, Luigi Antonio