admonish

verb

ad·​mon·​ish ad-ˈmä-nish 

admonished; admonishing; admonishes

transitive verb

1

a

: to indicate duties or obligations to

She admonished them to follow proper procedures.

b

: to express warning or disapproval to (someone) about a fault or oversight especially in a gentle but serious way

We were admonished for being late.

2

: to give friendly earnest advice or encouragement to

admonished them to be careful

They were admonished to take advantage of the opportunity.

… users are admonished to change passwords regularly …

—Mark Pothier

3

: to say (something) as advice or a warning

The sign admonished, "Watch your step."

"Please be silent while I tell my story," LaPautre admonished.

—Louise Erdrich

… parents admonishing kids in the backseat to watch out for the upholstery.

—Soleil Ho

admonisher noun

plural admonishers

admonishment

ad-ˈmä-nish-mənt 

noun

plural admonishments

Did you know?

When should you use admonish?

We won't admonish you if you don't know the origins of admonish. This word, along with its archaic synonym monish, likely traces back to the Latin verb monēre, meaning "to bring to the notice of," "to remind," and "to warn." Among monēre's other English descendants are monitor, premonition, monument, and (gulp) monster. Admonishing someone (for, say, being late) hardly risks being labeled a monster, however. While a word like rebuke suggests sternness and severity, admonish usually suggests friendly, gentle, or earnest criticizing done in the spirit of counselling and instructing.

Synonyms of admonish

• reprimand
• scold
• criticize
• blame
• chide

Choose the Right Synonym for admonish

reprove, rebuke, reprimand, admonish, reproach, chide mean to criticize adversely.

reprove implies an often kindly intent to correct a fault.

gently reproved my table manners

rebuke suggests a sharp or stern reproof.

the papal letter rebuked dissenting clerics

reprimand implies a severe, formal, often public or official rebuke.

reprimanded by the ethics committee

admonish suggests earnest or friendly warning and counsel.

admonished by my parents to control expenses

reproach and chide suggest displeasure or disappointment expressed in mild reproof or scolding.

reproached him for tardiness

chided by their mother for untidiness

Examples of admonish in a Sentence

"You landed in back of him," said Paul, my guide and friend. As he admonished me, the fish turned obligingly, opened its mouth, wide and white, and engulfed my fly. —Peter Kaminsky, New York Times, 17 June 2001

He is sympathetic but never condescending, or patronizing, or moralizing. His purpose is not to admonish or deplore but to understand. —C. Vann Woodward, New York Times Book Review, 5 Feb. 1989

Cops are, from the first day in the academy, admonished that juveniles must not be shot unless in dire emergency … —Joseph Wambaugh, Lines and Shadows, 1984

They were admonished to take advantage of the opportunity.

my physician is always admonishing me to eat more healthy foods

Recent Examples on the Web

Cursing, Porter admonished the staffer for appearing in the background of the shot. —Kaitlyn Schallhorn, Oc Register, 25 Oct. 2025

Consequently, the conference is imposing a $5,000 fine and admonishes all institutions to use the ‘out’ designation only if there are no circumstances under which a student-athlete could participate in a game. —Jordan Sigler, MSNBC Newsweek, 14 Oct. 2025

He was admonished in an awkward one-on-one interview by the legendary Alfredo Di Stefano for playing too high up the pitch against the man-marking Italians rather than dropping deep. —Michael Cox, New York Times, 5 Oct. 2025

The judge agreed and admonished the defense on the bench Friday. —Nicki Brown, CNN Money, 4 Oct. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English amonysshen, admonisshen, amonescen, alteration (with assimilation to the verbal suffix -issh, -esce, borrowed from Anglo-French -iss-, going back to the Latin inceptive suffix -ēsc-, -īsc-) of amonesten, borrowed from Anglo-French amonester, going back to Vulgar Latin *admonestāre, probably derivative of *admonestus, past participle of Latin admonēre "to give a reminder to, give advice to, caution" (modeled on comestus, past participle of comedere "to eat up, consume") from ad- ad- + monēre "to bring to the notice of, give warning" — more at mind entry 1

Note: The source of *admonestāre is uncertain. A cross between admonēre and molestāre, "to disturb, annoy, worry," has been hypothesized, though the lack of any Romance progeny for molestus, molestāre, etc., militates against the presence of this verb in proto-Romance.

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for admonish

• astonish

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Kids Definition

admonish

verb

ad·​mon·​ish ad-ˈmän-ish 

1

: to criticize or warn gently but seriously : warn of a fault

2

: to give friendly advice or encouragement to

admonished them to keep trying

admonishment

-mənt 

noun