adj
Meaning 1
Synonym of rhetorical.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: rhetorical
Antonyms: none provided
Standard Lemma guide
rhetoric
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
-
/ɹɪˈtɒɹɪk/
-
Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
-
/ˈɹɛtəɹɪk/
-
Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
-
also: /ɹɪˈtɒɹɪk/
-
CMU ARPABET: R EH1 T ER0 IH0 K Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
noun
Meaning 2
The art of using language, especially public speaking, as a means to persuade.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 3
Meaningless language with an exaggerated style intended to impress.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, derogatory, sometimes, uncountable
Examples
- It’s only so much rhetoric.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 4
study of the technique and rules for using language effectively (especially in public speaking)
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: literary study
noun
Meaning 5
loud and confused and empty talk
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
- mere rhetoric
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: palaver, hot air, empty words, empty talk
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: nonsense, bunk, nonsensicality, meaninglessness, hokum
noun
Meaning 6
high-flown style; excessive use of verbal ornamentation
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
- the grandiosity of his prose
- an excessive ornateness of language
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: grandiosity, magniloquence, ornateness, grandiloquence
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: expressive style, style
Narrower terms: flourish, bombast, fustian, rant, claptrap, blah
noun
Meaning 7
using language effectively to please or persuade
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: expressive style, style
History
Etymology
Etymology tree Ancient Greek εἴρω (eírō) Ancient Greek ῥήτωρ (rhḗtōr) Proto-Indo-European *-kos Proto-Hellenic *-kos Ancient Greek -κός (-kós) Ancient Greek -ῐκός (-ĭkós) Ancient Greek ῥητορικός (rhētorikós)bor. Latin rhētoricusbor. Old French rhetoriquebor. Middle English rhetorik English rhetoric Inherited from Middle English rhetorik, borrowed from Old French rhetorique, borrowed from Latin rhētoricus, borrowed from Ancient Greek ῥητορικός (rhētorikós), from ῥήτωρ (rhḗtōr, “public speaker”) + -ῐκός (-ĭkós). By surface analysis, rhetor + -ic.
Etymology tree Ancient Greek ῥητορῐκή τέχνη (rhētorĭkḗ tékhnē)ellip. Ancient Greek ῥητορικὴ (rhētorikḕ)bor. Latin rhētoricabor. Old French rhetoriquebor. Middle English rhetorik, rhetoric English rhetoric Inherited from Middle English rhetorik, rhetoric, borrowed from Old French rhetorique, borrowed from Latin rhētorica, borrowed from Ancient Greek ῥητορικὴ (rhētorikḕ), ellipsis of ῥητορῐκή τέχνη (rhētorĭkḗ tékhnē).
Across languages
Translations
138 source translations are retained for this English entry.
- Afrikaans: retoriek — art of using language for persuasion
- Afrikaans: redekuns — art of using language for persuasion
- Albanian: retorikë — art of using language for persuasion
- Arabic: بَلَاغَة (balāḡa) — art of using language for persuasion
- Arabic: فَصَاحَة (faṣāḥa) — art of using language for persuasion
- Armenian: հռետորաբանություն (hṙetorabanutʻyun) — art of using language for persuasion
- Belarusian: красамо́ўства (krasamówstva) — art of using language for persuasion
- Belarusian: рыто́рыка (rytóryka) — art of using language for persuasion
- Bulgarian: красноре́чие (krasnoréčie) — art of using language for persuasion
- Bulgarian: красноречи́вост (krasnorečívost) — art of using language for persuasion
- Bulgarian: рито́рика (ritórika) — art of using language for persuasion
- Catalan: retòrica — art of using language for persuasion
- Chinese Mandarin: 修辭 /修辞 (xiūcí) — art of using language for persuasion
- Chinese Mandarin: 修辭學 /修辞学 (xiūcíxué) — art of using language for persuasion
- Czech: řečnictví — art of using language for persuasion
- Czech: rétorika — art of using language for persuasion
- Czech: výřečnost — art of using language for persuasion
- Danish: retorik — art of using language for persuasion
- Danish: talekunst — art of using language for persuasion
- Dutch: redekunde — art of using language for persuasion
- Dutch: retorica — art of using language for persuasion
- Dutch: retoriek — art of using language for persuasion
- Esperanto: retoriko — art of using language for persuasion
- Estonian: retoorika — art of using language for persuasion
- Faroese: tungusnild — art of using language for persuasion
- Faroese: retorikkur — art of using language for persuasion
- Finnish: puhetaito — art of using language for persuasion
- Finnish: retoriikka — art of using language for persuasion
- French: rhétorique — art of using language for persuasion
- French: discours — art of using language for persuasion
- Galician: retórica — art of using language for persuasion
- Georgian: რიტორიკა (riṭoriḳa) — art of using language for persuasion
- German: Rhetorik — art of using language for persuasion
- German: Redekunst — art of using language for persuasion
- Greek: ρητορική (ritorikí) — art of using language for persuasion
- Ancient Greek: ῥητορική (rhētorikḗ) — art of using language for persuasion
- Hebrew: רֶטוֹרִיקָה (retórika) — art of using language for persuasion
- Hindi: वाक्पटुता (vākpaṭutā) — art of using language for persuasion
- Hindi: शब्दाडम्बर (śabdāḍambar) — art of using language for persuasion
- Hindi: वक्रपटुता (vakrapṭutā) — art of using language for persuasion
- Hindi: बलाग़त (balāġat) — art of using language for persuasion
- Hindi: फ़साहत (fasāhat) — art of using language for persuasion
- Hungarian: szónoklattan — art of using language for persuasion
- Hungarian: retorika — art of using language for persuasion
- Indonesian: retorika — art of using language for persuasion
- Irish: reitric — art of using language for persuasion
- Irish: roscaireacht — art of using language for persuasion
- Italian: retorica — art of using language for persuasion
- Japanese: 修辞学 (shūjigaku) — art of using language for persuasion
- Kazakh: шешендік (şeşendık) — art of using language for persuasion
- Kazakh: риторика (ritorika) — art of using language for persuasion
- Korean: 수사학 (susahak) — art of using language for persuasion
- Korean: 미사여구 (misayeogu) — art of using language for persuasion
- Lao: ວາທະສາດ (wā tha sāt) — art of using language for persuasion
- Latvian: retorika — art of using language for persuasion
- Lithuanian: retorika — art of using language for persuasion
- Macedonian: реторика (retorika) — art of using language for persuasion
- Macedonian: речитост (rečitost) — art of using language for persuasion
- Macedonian: красноречивост (krasnorečivost) — art of using language for persuasion
- Malay: ريتوريک — art of using language for persuasion
- Malay: retorik — art of using language for persuasion
- Norwegian Bokmål: retorikk — art of using language for persuasion
- Old Norse: málsnildarlist — art of using language for persuasion
- Persian: بَلَاغَت (balāġat) — art of using language for persuasion
- Persian: فَصَاحَت (fasāhat) — art of using language for persuasion
- Polish: retoryka — art of using language for persuasion
- Portuguese: retórica — art of using language for persuasion
- Punjabi: ਬਲਾਗ਼ਤ (balāġat) — art of using language for persuasion
- Punjabi: ਫ਼ਸਾਹਤ (fasāhat) — art of using language for persuasion
- Romanian: retorică — art of using language for persuasion
- Russian: красноре́чие (krasnoréčije) — art of using language for persuasion
- Russian: красноба́йство (krasnobájstvo) — art of using language for persuasion
- Russian: рито́рика (ritórika) — art of using language for persuasion
- Sanskrit: वाक्पटुता (vākpaṭutā) — art of using language for persuasion
- Sanskrit: शब्दाडम्बर (śabdāḍambara) — art of using language for persuasion
- Sanskrit: वक्रपटुता (vakrapaṭutā) — art of using language for persuasion
- Serbo-Croatian: рето̀рика — art of using language for persuasion
- Serbo-Croatian: го̀во̄рнӣштво — art of using language for persuasion
- Serbo-Croatian: рѐчито̄ст — art of using language for persuasion
- Serbo-Croatian: рјѐчито̄ст — art of using language for persuasion
- Serbo-Croatian: краснорѐчиво̄ст — art of using language for persuasion
- Serbo-Croatian: краснорјѐчиво̄ст — art of using language for persuasion
- Serbo-Croatian: retòrika — art of using language for persuasion
- Serbo-Croatian: gòvōrnīštvo — art of using language for persuasion
- Serbo-Croatian: rèčitōst — art of using language for persuasion
- Serbo-Croatian: rjèčitōst — art of using language for persuasion
- Serbo-Croatian: krasnorèčivōst — art of using language for persuasion
- Serbo-Croatian: krasnorjèčivōst — art of using language for persuasion
- Slovak: rečníctvo — art of using language for persuasion
- Slovak: rétorika — art of using language for persuasion
- Slovak: výrečnosť — art of using language for persuasion
- Slovene: govorništvo — art of using language for persuasion
- Slovene: retorika — art of using language for persuasion
- Spanish: retórica — art of using language for persuasion
- Swedish: retorik — art of using language for persuasion
- Tagalog: sayusay — art of using language for persuasion
- Tajik: балоғат (baloġat) — art of using language for persuasion
- Tajik: фасоҳат (fasohat) — art of using language for persuasion
- Thai: วาทศิลป์ (waa-tá-sǐn) — art of using language for persuasion
- Thai: วาทศาสตร์ (waa-tá-sàat) — art of using language for persuasion
- Turkish: retorik — art of using language for persuasion
- Turkish: belagat — art of using language for persuasion
- Ukrainian: красномо́вство (krasnomóvstvo) — art of using language for persuasion
- Ukrainian: красномо́вність (krasnomóvnistʹ) — art of using language for persuasion
- Ukrainian: рито́рика (rytóryka) — art of using language for persuasion
- Urdu: بَلَاغَت (balāġat) — art of using language for persuasion
- Urdu: فَصَاحَت (fasāhat) — art of using language for persuasion
- Vietnamese: tu từ học — art of using language for persuasion
- Belarusian: шматсло́ўнасць (šmatslównascʹ) — meaningless language
- Belarusian: шматсло́ўе (šmatslówje) — meaningless language
- Belarusian: пустасло́ўе (pustaslówje) — meaningless language
- Belarusian: словаблу́дства (slovablúdstva) — meaningless language
- Bulgarian: многосло́вие (mnogoslóvie) — meaningless language
- Catalan: retòrica — meaningless language
- Chinese Mandarin: 強詞奪理 /强词夺理 (qiángcíduólǐ) — meaningless language
- Czech: rétorika — meaningless language
- Czech: floskule — meaningless language
- Danish: retorik — meaningless language
- Danish: kancellistil — meaningless language
- Finnish: retoriikka — meaningless language
- French: rhétorique — meaningless language
- Galician: retórica — meaningless language
- Irish: reitric — meaningless language
- Irish: roscaireacht — meaningless language
- Polish: pustosłowie — meaningless language
- Portuguese: retórica — meaningless language
- Russian: пустосло́вие (pustoslóvije) — meaningless language
- Russian: фразёрство (frazjórstvo) — meaningless language
- Russian: словоблу́дие (slovoblúdije) — meaningless language
- Russian: пустозво́нство (pustozvónstvo) — meaningless language
- Serbo-Croatian: рето̀рика — meaningless language
- Serbo-Croatian: retòrika — meaningless language
- Ukrainian: багатослі́вність (bahatoslívnistʹ) — meaningless language
- Ukrainian: марнослі́в'я (marnoslívʺja) — meaningless language
- Ukrainian: марносло́вство (marnoslóvstvo) — meaningless language
- Ukrainian: пустослі́в'я (pustoslívʺja) — meaningless language
- Ukrainian: словоблу́дство (slovoblúdstvo) — meaningless language
- Ukrainian: словоблу́ддя (slovoblúddja) — meaningless language
Real reading context