Word of the day: Litany

A litany is a long list or series of things, often complaints, problems, or repeated statements. In everyday language, when someone says there was a “litany of issues,” they mean there were many issues, one after another.

This is a fairly common word, especially in news articles, speeches, and conversations where people describe a long sequence of concerns or examples.

The word usually refers to a repetitive or lengthy list. It can be used for complaints (“a litany of excuses”), facts (“a litany of achievements”), or events (“a litany of delays”), but it most often carries a sense of something piling up.


The tone of the word is generally neutral to slightly negative, because it’s often used when talking about problems or frustrations.

Part of speech: Noun

Origin: From the Greek litaneia, meaning “prayer” or “supplication,” which passed into Latin and then English. Originally, a litany was a form of prayer with repeated responses in religious services. Over time, the meaning expanded to describe any long, repetitive list.

Examples:

1. The manager listened patiently to the customer’s litany of complaints.
   
2. The report detailed a litany of safety improvements made over the year.
   
3. During the meeting, she recited a litany of reasons why the project had fallen behind schedule.
   

In real life, you’ll hear litany in news reports, political speeches, workplace discussions, and storytelling when someone wants to emphasize that there were many points being made in a row.

In short, a litany is a long, often repetitive list of things, usually problems or complaints, and it’s a useful word when you want to describe something that feels like it goes on and on.