rant

1 of 2

verb

ranted; ranting; rants
1
intransitive : to complain loudly, angrily, or unreasonably
… films and books ranting against corporations and the gun lobby …Joel Stein
"You can rant and rave all you want," she said, "but it's not going to change things."
2
transitive + intransitive : to talk or recite in a noisy, excited, or bombastic manner
… barkers ranting at the crowds …Gerald Shapiro
… the actor who rants Shakespeare …H. E. Clurman
ranter noun
rantingly adverb

rant

2 of 2

noun

1
a(1)
: a long, angry speech or piece of writing : tirade
went on a rant about the price of gas
… in Walden's transcendental rants I found all my angsty teenage convictions gloriously and authoritatively ratified.M. Allen Cunningham
(2)
: a bombastic extravagant speech
… two other boys … happened on a street orator; tiring of the rant, one boy pushed the speaker's hat off with a stick …Oscar Wilde
b
: bombastic extravagant language
The speeches were full of rant, cant, and vanity …Ursula K. Le Guin
2
dialectal British : a rousing good time

Examples of rant in a Sentence

Verb “You can rant and rave all you want,” she said, “but it's not going to change things.” He ranted that they were out to get him. Noun after complaining about the hotel's lousy service, the woman went off on another rant about the condition of her room instead of addressing the current crisis, the mayor's speech was a lot of rant emphasizing his accomplishments
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Verb
Cheung played a tape of Nicholson ranting and raving at the Kaiser facility in Irvine. City News Service, Oc Register, 22 Oct. 2025 She is outwardly spoken against transgender rights and has ranted several times about Representative Sarah McBride, an openly transgender member of Congress, and her pronouns. Mandy Taheri, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 Oct. 2025
Noun
Whether likening transition to conversion therapy or calling trans women men, Rowling’s outlandish anti-trans rants have been making headlines for years. Quispe López, Them., 30 Oct. 2025 Adidas has sought to put the Yeezy affair behind it since ending the highly profitable partnership with the brand’s designer – the rapper Ye, formerly known as Kanye West – over his antisemitic rants. Reuters 19 Hr Ago, CNN Money, 29 Oct. 2025 See All Example Sentences for rant

Word History

Etymology

Verb

obsolete Dutch ranten, randen

First Known Use

Verb

1604, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Noun

1650, in the meaning defined at sense 1a2

Time Traveler
The first known use of rant was in 1604

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Rant.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rant. Accessed 5 Nov. 2025.

Kids Definition

rant

1 of 2 verb
: to talk loudly and wildly
ranter noun

rant

2 of 2 noun
: loud and wild speech

More from Merriam-Webster on rant

Last Updated: - Definition revised
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!