Word of the Day

: November 28, 2012

hortative

adjective HOR-tuh-tiv

What It Means

: giving exhortation : serving to advise or warn

hortative in Context

The candidate's hortative style of speaking appealed to some voters but led others to dismiss him as a blowhard.

"But it's important to remember that 'Jersey Shore' is on MTV, a youth-oriented cable channel that has a hortative streak: series like 'Teen Mom' and 'If You Really Knew Me' carry a strong 'don't try this at home' message." - From an article by Alessandra Stanley in The New York Times, August 20, 2010

Did You Know?

"We give nothing so freely as advice," observed French writer Duc de La Rochefoucauld in 1665. "Hortative" and "exhort" (meaning "to urge earnestly") are two words that testify to our eagerness to counsel others. Both trace to Latin "hortari," meaning "to urge." "Hortative" has been used as both a noun (meaning "an advisory comment") and an adjective since the 17th century, but the noun is now extremely rare. You may also encounter the adjectives "hortatory," "exhortatory," and "exhortative," all of which have the same meaning as "hortative."