vehement

adjective

ve·​he·​ment ˈvē-ə-mənt How to pronounce vehement (audio)
: marked by forceful energy : powerful
a vehement wind
: such as
a
: intensely emotional : impassioned, fervid
vehement patriotism
b(1)
: deeply felt
a vehement suspicion
(2)
: forcibly expressed
vehement denunciations
c
: bitterly antagonistic
a vehement debate
vehemently adverb

Examples of vehement in a Sentence

Cranes rise above the old rooftops, adding new office towers and new condominiums and new malls to a city where Jonathan Swift once issued his vehement bulletins. Pete Hamill, Gourmet, April 2007
As they shouted and mocked, I wondered how they could have developed such intense, vehement hatred toward people with whom they had had no previous contact. Todd Hechtman, The News/Sun-Sentinel, 1 Feb. 1987
He cursed himself like a less scrupulous Job, as a vehement man will do when he loses self-respect, the last mental prop under poverty. Thomas Hardy, The Mayor of Casterbridge, 1886
Both the ladies indulged in vehement screaming for several minutes; and Mr. Cymon Tuggs, besides sustaining intense bodily pain, had the additional mental anguish of witnessing their distressing situation, without having the power to rescue them, by reason of his leg being firmly screwed in between the animal and the wall. Charles Dickens, Sketches by "Boz", 1836
He issued a vehement denial of the accusation. The proposal has faced vehement opposition from many teachers. She was vehement about the need for new safety measures.
Recent Examples on the Web
These examples are automatically compiled from online sources to illustrate current usage. Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Waters, who has frequently drawn the ire of the pro-Israel community for his vehement support of the BDS movement, which calls for boycotts and sanctions against the state of Israel, again rejected the claims of antisemitism. Gil Kaufman, Billboard, 4 Oct. 2024 If Trump loses, the Harris administration will have highly visible and vehement critics to whom a lot of people listen. Kaitlyn Tiffany, The Atlantic, 15 Oct. 2024 This episode, to no particular surprise, has elicited the most vehement reactions in Muslim states across the world. Sumit Ganguly, Foreign Affairs, 30 June 2022 Meanwhile Trump, with his relocation of the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem and the BLM to Colorado, has demonstrated a willingness to relocate and geographically redistribute parts of the federal government, even in the face of vehement opposition. Patrick Gleason, Forbes, 20 Sep. 2024 See all Example Sentences for vehement 

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Middle French, going back to Old French, borrowed from Latin vehement-, vehemens, vēmens "violent, vigorous, (of feelings) overmastering, powerful," perhaps from vehere "to convey, carry along, drive" + -mens, adjective suffix (as in clēmens "mild, calm") of uncertain origin

Note: Alternatively explained as a prefix vē- "faulty, excessive or deficient" and ment-, mens "mind," in which case -ehe- is an unetymological spelling of the long vowel. Though this would account for vehemens in place of *vehimens (with normal vowel weakening), the word never has the sense "mentally deranged" (the meanings of the presumed parallel formations vēcors and vēsānus).

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

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

Dictionary Entries Near vehement

Cite this Entry

“Vehement.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/vehement. Accessed 8 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

vehement

adjective
ve·​he·​ment ˈvē-ə-mənt How to pronounce vehement (audio)
1
: showing great force or energy
a vehement wind
2
: highly emotional
vehement patriotism
3
: forcibly expressed
vehement denials
vehemently adverb

More from Merriam-Webster on vehement

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