at length
Idioms-
In full, extensively. For example, The preacher went on at length about sin , or I have read at length about these cameras . [c. 1500]
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After a long time, finally, as in At length the procession ended . [Early 1500s] Also see in the long run .
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The authors of the Constitution, having thrown off a king, debated at length how to guard against a power-crazed president.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 9, 2026
They have twice been questioned at length by public prosecutors and lawyers for the civil parties.
From Barron's • Apr. 8, 2026
Khalil has spoken at length about befriending Jewish students at Columbia, attending Shabbat dinners and seeing Jewish students as “integral” during the protest movement on campus.
From Salon • Mar. 12, 2026
Suranovas replied at length and, when he was released on remand recently, agreed to meet.
From BBC • Mar. 11, 2026
And he clenched his fists and began to plead the blood, to exorcise the hosts of Hell, but even this motion was like another motion, and at length he fell on his knees to pray.
From "Go Tell It on the Mountain" by James Baldwin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
