Litany
//ˈlɪtəni// noun
noun ·Moderate ·College level
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A ritual liturgical prayer in which a series of prayers recited by a leader are alternated with responses from the congregation.
- 2 any long and tedious address or recital wordnet
- 3 A prolonged or tedious list. figuratively
"The litany of packaging innovations introduced to or popularized in the U.S. food market over the last generation seems endless: flexible aseptic packaging, barrier plastics, squeezables, lightweight glass, the retort pouch, […]"
Example
More examples"A litany of taste tests enabled Hugo to distinguish between a variety of pastes."
Etymology
From Middle English, from Old French letanie, from Latin litania, from Ancient Greek λιτανεία (litaneía, “prayer”), from λιτή (litḗ, “prayer, entreaty”).
Related phrases
More for "litany"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.