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

This was the kind of emphatic victory the Spurs needed. —Jon Krawczynski, New York Times, 7 May 2026

This misguided motion by a Democratic Socialist councilmember deserves a loud, emphatic no vote from the full City Council. —Matt Klink, Oc Register, 1 May 2026

In the second quarter, Bridges found Mitchell Robinson for an emphatic alley-oop dunk. —Peter Sblendorio, New York Daily News, 1 May 2026

Sets from upstarts like Creepy Nuts, Pawsa, Geese and Slayyyter, along with emphatic crowds at rock heavyweights like Jack White, Turnstile and even Sombr, traded seamlessness and precision for immediacy and friction — louder, looser, more physical in ways that were best felt than watched. —Andrea Domanick, Los Angeles Times, 26 Apr. 2026

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