emphatic

adjective

em·​phat·​ic im-ˈfa-tik 

em-

1

: uttered with or marked by emphasis

an emphatic refusal

2

: tending to express oneself in forceful speech or to take decisive action

3

: attracting special attention

4

: constituting or belonging to a set of tense forms in English consisting of the auxiliary do followed by an infinitive without to that are used to facilitate rhetorical inversion or to emphasize something

emphatically

im-ˈfa-ti-k(ə-)lē 

em-

adverb

Synonyms of emphatic

• aggressive
• vigorous
• violent
• forceful
• dynamic
• insistent
• energetic

Examples of emphatic in a Sentence

They were emphatic about their political differences.

the governor issued an emphatic denial of all charges

Recent Examples on the Web

Veteran consistency sought On Black Friday, Ryan Hartman made an emphatic return from a lower body that had sidelined him for the previous four games. —Jess Myers, Twin Cities, 2 Dec. 2025

Lionel Messi and his high-profile Inter Miami team are finally living up to the hype and meeting expectations, heading to their first MLS Cup Final in club history after an emphatic 5-1 win over NYCFC in the Eastern Conference final on Saturday night at Chase Stadium. —Miami Herald, 30 Nov. 2025

The Ohio State Buckeyes ended a four-game losing streak to the Michigan Wolverines on Saturday with an impressive and emphatic 27-9 victory that included a number of controversial calls. —Andrew McCarty, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Nov. 2025

That backpack, the Matein Travel Laptop Backpack, has almost 110,000 ratings, including pilots who have left emphatic reviews. —Olivia Young, Travel + Leisure, 25 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from French & Late Latin; French emphatique "forcefully expressive," going back to Middle French, borrowed from Late Latin emphaticus, borrowed from Greek emphatikós "expressive, indicative," from empha-, stem in noun derivation of emphaínein "to exhibit, display, indicate" + -t-, verbal adjective formative + -ikos -ic entry 1 — more at emphasis

First Known Use

1602, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for emphatic

• asthmatic
• chromatic
• climatic
• dogmatic
• dramatic
• ecstatic
• erratic
• eustatic
• fanatic
• hepatic
• lymphatic
• magmatic

Kids Definition

emphatic

adjective

em·​phat·​ic im-ˈfat-ik 

em-

1

: uttered with or marked by emphasis

2

: tending to express oneself in forceful speech or action

3

: attracting special attention

an emphatic design

emphatically

-ˈfat-i-k(ə-)lē 

adverb