lambaste
verb
-ˈbast
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The origins of lambaste (which can also be spelled lambast) are somewhat uncertain, but the word was most likely formed by combining the verbs lam and baste, both of which mean “to beat severely.” (This baste is unrelated to either the sewing or cooking one.) Although lambaste started out in the 1600s meaning “to assault violently,” English speakers were by the 1800s applying it in cases involving harsh attacks made with words rather than fists. This new sense clearly struck a chord; after fighting its way into the lexicon, lambaste has held fast ever since.
Synonyms
Examples of lambaste in a Sentence
Meg James, Los Angeles Times, 4 Apr. 2024
The government lambasted the farmers for failing to contain violent elements that threw e-bikes off a bridge and set the entry to a subway station aflame.
—Raf Casert, Fortune Europe, 27 Mar. 2024
If members of Congress have concerns about personnel policy in the Pentagon, there are ways to address it other than publicly lambasting senior military leaders—such as by exercising their regular oversight responsibilities through committees tasked with monitoring the armed forces.
—Risa Brooks, Foreign Affairs, 20 Mar. 2024
Since its passage, Proposition 47 has been lambasted by police officials, prosecutors and others.
—Lyndsay Winkley, San Diego Union-Tribune, 24 Feb. 2024
On Monday, his Trian issued a 19-page presentation lambasting Lagomasino’s record.
—Meg James, Los Angeles Times, 2 Apr. 2024
Games that do this are lambasted, recently Dragon’s Dogma 2, previously a whole lot of Ubisoft games, and games that don’t are praised, Elden Ring, Baldur’s Gate, Spider-Man, etc.
—Paul Tassi, Forbes, 30 Mar. 2024
At a meeting Thursday, Jackson and other commissioners lambasted the new head of the Community Police Review Agency, which now investigates all complaints against OPD officers, for not yet having developed a clear hiring plan for staff in that office.
—Shomik Mukherjee, The Mercury News, 30 Mar. 2024
And while many Republicans privately and publicly lambasted that decision as beyond the pale, including by GOP standards, operatives conceded there's little that can be done to prevent a ruling or bill from making a splash in the future, even if it's widely viewed as unacceptable.
—Tal Axelrod, ABC News, 28 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'lambaste.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Lambaste.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/lambaste. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
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lambaste
verb
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