exhort

verb

ex·​hort ig-ˈzȯrt How to pronounce exhort (audio)
exhorted; exhorting; exhorts

transitive verb

: to incite by argument or advice : urge strongly
exhorting voters to do the right thing

intransitive verb

: to give warnings or advice : make urgent appeals
exhorter noun

Did you know?

If you want to add a little oomph to your urge in speech or writing—and formal oomph at that—we exhort you to try using exhort as a synonym instead. Arriving in the 15th century from the Anglo-French word exorter, exhort traces back further to the Latin verb hortari, meaning “to incite to action, urge on, or encourage.” Latin users added the prefix ex- to hortari to intensify it; in essence, exhortari is a succinct way of saying “to really, really urge.” The Latin words adhortari (its meaning similar to that of exhortari) and dehortari (“to dissuade”) also found their way into English as adhort and dehort, respectively, but neither of these remains in current use.

Examples of exhort in a Sentence

He exhorted his people to take back their land. She exhorted her listeners to support the proposition.
Recent Examples on the Web On an August day in 2011, a man stood outside City Hall in Newark, New Jersey, exhorting a crowd through a wireless microphone. Kelefa Sanneh, The New Yorker, 30 Sep. 2024 Advertisement Ecuadorean President Daniel Noboa Azin exhorted the world to lower youth unemployment. Edith M. Lederer, Los Angeles Times, 23 Sep. 2024 In the face of this generational sea change, Cuba’s government wields power in an existential limbo and fills the void by exhorting its citizens to be faithful patriots. Jon Lee Anderson, Foreign Affairs, 14 Dec. 2021 Those rumors are back, along with many others, as influencers exhort people to avoid all kinds of foods with the ultimate goal of banishing inflammation from the body. Keren Landman, Vox, 7 Dec. 2018 See all Example Sentences for exhort 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'exhort.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Anglo-French exorter, from Latin exhortari, from ex- + hortari to incite — more at yearn

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Time Traveler
The first known use of exhort was in the 15th century

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Dictionary Entries Near exhort

Cite this Entry

“Exhort.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/exhort. Accessed 16 Oct. 2024.

Kids Definition

exhort

verb
ex·​hort ig-ˈzȯrt How to pronounce exhort (audio)
: to urge strongly
exhorted all citizens to vote
exhorter noun

More from Merriam-Webster on exhort

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