fulsome
ful·some/ˈfʊlsəm/adjective
fulsome is spelled F-U-L-S-O-M-E: 7 letters and 2 syllables (ful·some). It appears about once in every 7 million words in written English, the 79,518th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, fulsome means “Offensive to good taste, tactless, overzealous, excessive” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in fulsome?
| Letters | 7: F-U-L-S-O-M-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: ful·some |
| In writing | about once in every 7 million words; the 79,518th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is fulsome?
Fulsome appears about once in every 7 million words in written English, the 79,518th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce fulsome?
- /ˈfʊlsəm/
Fulsome has 2 syllables, split ful·some in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-fulsome.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of fulsome
- fulsomer comparative
- more fulsome comparative
- fulsomest superlative
- most fulsome superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does fulsome mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Offensive to good taste, tactless, overzealous, excessive.
- 2
Excessively flattering (connoting insincerity).
- 3
Characterised or marked by fullness; abundant, copious.
The fulsome thanks of the war-torn nation lifted our weary spirits.
- 4
Fully developed; mature.
Her fulsome timbre resonated throughout the hall.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Fulsome in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| German | taktlos, geschmacklos, übereifrig, übertrieben, widerlich , schmeichlerisch |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does fulsome come from?
From Middle English fulsom, equivalent to full + -some. The meaning has evolved from an original positive connotation "abundant" to a neutral "plump" to a negative "overfed". In modern usage, it can take on any of these inflections. See usage note. The negative sense "offensive, gross; disgusting, sickening" developed secondarily after the 13th century and was influenced by Middle English foul (“foul”). In the 18th century, the word was sometimes even spelled foulsome.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).