1
: a discourse given before an audience or class especially for instruction
2
: a formal reproof
Synonyms
Examples of lecture in a Sentence
Noun
She's planning to give a series of lectures on modern art.
Several hundred people are expected to attend the lecture.
I came home late and got a lecture from my parents.
I gave her a lecture about doing better in school.
Verb
She lectures in art at the local college.
They lectured their children about the importance of honesty.
I lectured her about doing better in school.
Recent Examples on the Web
Koh Ewe, TIME, 25 Apr. 2024
Eddie was delivering a lecture to a group of intermediate and advanced players.
—Frank Stewart, The Mercury News, 21 Apr. 2024
The composer used recordings from Mr. Dennett’s lectures and interviews.
—Jonathan Kandell, New York Times, 19 Apr. 2024
With this in mind, Danda suggests parents keep their comments brief, which allows for more of a back-and-forth discussion and prevents the pitfall of the discussion from turning into a lecture.
—Mia Taylor, Parents, 18 Apr. 2024
In 1938, around the same time as the high-spirited children’s lecture, the latest in a long list of doctors died during self-trials with anesthesia.
—Rachel Lance, Smithsonian Magazine, 16 Apr. 2024
Advertisement World & Nation Author Salman Rushdie on ventilator, could lose eye after stabbing on lecture stage
Aug. 12, 2022
Rushdie was swiftly hospitalized with serious injuries and underwent surgery.
—Alexandra Del Rosario, Los Angeles Times, 15 Apr. 2024
But his politics are less predictable than his tarte-Tatin fetish and his lectures about manners might lead one to believe.
—Lauren Collins, The New Yorker, 1 Apr. 2024
Both trips will include hands-on experiences and lectures so travelers leave with a better understanding of the history and culture of these distinct culinary regions.
—Dobrina Zhekova, Travel + Leisure, 11 Apr. 2024
Feroz Hassan Khan, Foreign Affairs, 23 Apr. 2024
Tourists crowd the narrow, quaint streets of the area called Gion, often following tour guides who show people around and lecture for long hours, local district official Isokazu Ota said Friday.
—Yuri Kageyama, Quartz, 8 Mar. 2024
Photos show groups of them staring, enraptured, at mundane pieces of infrastructure or studiously hunching over their notebooks as they are lectured about the greatness of China’s achievements.
—Timothy McLaughlin, The Atlantic, 9 Feb. 2024
The new movie confirms that Norbury and Duvall are a couple and live together, as revealed in the gym scene where the two educators lecture North Shore’s junior girls about the infamous Burn Book, which details insults about each female junior.
—Daysia Tolentino, NBC News, 13 Jan. 2024
Throughout the legal process, Dr. Mott, who lectured on Black Studies, was battling Stage 4 adrenal cancer.
—Debra Kamin, New York Times, 25 Mar. 2024
In one scene, Maxine acts like a party is a matter of life and death, and in another Linda is lectured on her privilege by her Black friend Virginia (Amber Chardae Robinson).
—Kelly Lawler, USA TODAY, 20 Mar. 2024
The boy approached his father for advice, and the older man didn’t lecture his son about following the rules.
—Peter Hessler, The New Yorker, 1 Apr. 2024
West has lectured and spoken at several institutions including Yale University, University of Michigan, the Dramatists Guild, Howard University and the Shubert Organization.
—Brent Lang, Variety, 14 Mar. 2024
Noun
This week, an American professor has sparked controversy in Malaysia after criticizing the Southeast Asian nation’s official pro-Palestinian stance on the conflict during a visiting lecture.
—Koh Ewe, TIME, 25 Apr. 2024
Eddie was delivering a lecture to a group of intermediate and advanced players.
—Frank Stewart, The Mercury News, 21 Apr. 2024
The composer used recordings from Mr. Dennett’s lectures and interviews.
—Jonathan Kandell, New York Times, 19 Apr. 2024
With this in mind, Danda suggests parents keep their comments brief, which allows for more of a back-and-forth discussion and prevents the pitfall of the discussion from turning into a lecture.
—Mia Taylor, Parents, 18 Apr. 2024
In 1938, around the same time as the high-spirited children’s lecture, the latest in a long list of doctors died during self-trials with anesthesia.
—Rachel Lance, Smithsonian Magazine, 16 Apr. 2024
Advertisement World & Nation Author Salman Rushdie on ventilator, could lose eye after stabbing on lecture stage
Aug. 12, 2022
Rushdie was swiftly hospitalized with serious injuries and underwent surgery.
—Alexandra Del Rosario, Los Angeles Times, 15 Apr. 2024
But his politics are less predictable than his tarte-Tatin fetish and his lectures about manners might lead one to believe.
—Lauren Collins, The New Yorker, 1 Apr. 2024
Both trips will include hands-on experiences and lectures so travelers leave with a better understanding of the history and culture of these distinct culinary regions.
—Dobrina Zhekova, Travel + Leisure, 11 Apr. 2024
Verb
The United States supported the Pakistani military’s brutal domestic antiterrorism operations but then lectured the country on human rights and democracy.
—Feroz Hassan Khan, Foreign Affairs, 23 Apr. 2024
Tourists crowd the narrow, quaint streets of the area called Gion, often following tour guides who show people around and lecture for long hours, local district official Isokazu Ota said Friday.
—Yuri Kageyama, Quartz, 8 Mar. 2024
Photos show groups of them staring, enraptured, at mundane pieces of infrastructure or studiously hunching over their notebooks as they are lectured about the greatness of China’s achievements.
—Timothy McLaughlin, The Atlantic, 9 Feb. 2024
The new movie confirms that Norbury and Duvall are a couple and live together, as revealed in the gym scene where the two educators lecture North Shore’s junior girls about the infamous Burn Book, which details insults about each female junior.
—Daysia Tolentino, NBC News, 13 Jan. 2024
Throughout the legal process, Dr. Mott, who lectured on Black Studies, was battling Stage 4 adrenal cancer.
—Debra Kamin, New York Times, 25 Mar. 2024
In one scene, Maxine acts like a party is a matter of life and death, and in another Linda is lectured on her privilege by her Black friend Virginia (Amber Chardae Robinson).
—Kelly Lawler, USA TODAY, 20 Mar. 2024
The boy approached his father for advice, and the older man didn’t lecture his son about following the rules.
—Peter Hessler, The New Yorker, 1 Apr. 2024
West has lectured and spoken at several institutions including Yale University, University of Michigan, the Dramatists Guild, Howard University and the Shubert Organization.
—Brent Lang, Variety, 14 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'lecture.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near lecture
Cite this Entry
“Lecture.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/lecture. Accessed 29 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
lecture
1 of 2 noun
lec·ture
ˈlek-chər 
-shər
1
: a talk given before an audience or class especially for instruction
lecture
2 of 2 verb
lectured; lecturing
ˈlek-chə-riŋ
ˈlek-shriŋ
1
: to give a lecture or a series of lectures
2
: to instruct by lectures
3
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