tautologous
Saying it twice
Tautologous describes something that repeats the same idea in different words, adding no new information.
A phrase like free gift is tautologous because gifts are by definition free.
The word applies to arguments that prove nothing by restating their premises, or to any expression where apparent elaboration is actually redundancy.
Exceeding what suffices
- needlessNot required
- unnecessaryNot essential or required
- repetitiveMarked by recurrence
- redundantExceeding what's needed
duplicate · excess · surplus · dispensable · unneeded · unwarranted · gratuitous · otiose
Alluding to itself
- circular reasoningFallacy assuming its conclusion
- begging the questionAssuming what needs proof
- self-evidentRequiring no demonstration
- axiomaticAccepted without question
truistic · vacuous · empty · meaningless · uninformative · self-justifying · recursive · closed-loop
Using more language than necessary
- long-windedExcessively wordy, tediously so
- prolixExcessively wordy in speech
- verboseMore words than necessary
- circumlocutorySpeaking in circles
periphrastic · pleonasm · redundancy · verbosity · wordiness · prolixity · diffuse · discursive
Act of redoing
- restatementRewording of something said
- reiterationSaying something again
- emphasisStress given to something
- amplificationIncrease in intensity
parallelism · anaphora · epistrophe · expletive · pleonasm · doubling
superfluous
Exceeding what suffices
- needlessNot required
- unnecessaryNot essential or required
- repetitiveMarked by recurrence
redundant · duplicate · excess · surplus · dispensable · unneeded · unwarranted · gratuitous · otiose · pleonastic
self-referential
Alluding to itself
- circular reasoningFallacy assuming its conclusion
- begging the questionAssuming what needs proof
- self-evidentRequiring no demonstration
axiomatic · truistic · vacuous · empty · meaningless · uninformative · self-justifying · recursive · closed-loop · definitional
wordy
Using more language than necessary
- long-windedExcessively wordy, tediously so
- prolixExcessively wordy in speech
- verboseMore words than necessary
circumlocutory · periphrastic · pleonasm · redundancy · verbosity · wordiness · prolixity · diffuse · discursive · rambling
repetition
Act of redoing
- restatementRewording of something said
- reiterationSaying something again
- emphasisStress given to something
amplification · parallelism · anaphora · epistrophe · expletive · pleonasm · doubling
tautologousinformative
Providing useful knowledge
substantive · contingent · meaningful · falsifiable · empirical