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Laconism

Device
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

The poetic technique of expressing complex ideas with minimal words, emphasizing precision and omission.

Detailed Definition
Laconism is extreme verbal brevity or concision, named after the Spartans of Laconia, who prized terse, potent speech; in poetry, laconic lines—like haiku or epigrams—achieve maximum impact through minimal means, using omission, understatement, and sharp imagery to imply more than they state, as in Frost’s “For Once, Then, Something,” where restraint amplifies mystery and emotional weight.
Example
Example in poetry:
Laconism in Hemingway’s poetic prose: “It was cold and the wind blew”; Dickinson’s dashes create laconic intensity: “After great pain, a formal feeling comes”; Laconic epitaphs: “Here lies one whose name was writ in water” (Keats); Twitter poetry thrives on laconism: “Grief: a stone in the shoe”; Laconism in haiku: “Winter solitude— / in a world of one color / the sound of wind”
Additional Notes
Extreme brevity of expression, Spartan terseness. Named for ancient Laconia (Sparta). In poetry, creates compressed power. Related to brevity and concision. Opposite of verbose or expansive styles.
Also Known As
extreme brevity compressed expression
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