declaim

verb

di-ˈklām How to pronounce declaim (audio)
Definition of declaimnext
1
as in to speak
to give a formal often extended talk on a subject over the last two centuries some of the most illustrious personages of their times have declaimed in the town's historic lyceum

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in to harangue
to talk as if giving an important and formal speech he declaimed at some length about the nation's obligation to spread democratic values around the world

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of declaim More often, though, Tallent demonstrates his characters’ precarity rather than declaiming about it. — Los Angeles Times, 20 Jan. 2026 But expect more than a few awards pundits to declaim that the Academy, finally, has no other choice but to present Park Chan-wook with his first Oscar nomination. — Patrick Brzeski, HollywoodReporter, 10 Oct. 2025 Does Joyce’s fellow drama kid Alan (Eric Wiegand) hoist a skull aloft and declaim some Shakespeare in a bad English accent? — Sara Holdren, Vulture, 23 Apr. 2025 The Koreans have a lesson to share with those whose intellectuals, driven by identity and the metaphysics of difference, declaim ownership of the Enlightenment and its legacy. — George Monastiriakos, Newsweek, 31 Dec. 2024 See All Example Sentences for declaim
Recent Examples of Synonyms for declaim
  1. speak
  2. harangue
  3. lecture
  4. orate
  5. talk
  6. discourse
Verb
  • Anyone speaking on camera under those circumstances, having given so much on the pitch, deserves a significant amount of leeway.
    — Jack Pitt-Brooke, New York Times, 14 July 2026
  • Meeting with Gulf leaders late last month, Secretary of State Marco Rubio had spoken forcefully against Iran charging fees for transit through the strait.
    — Jon Gambrell, Fortune, 13 July 2026
Definition of speak
Verb
  • Benatia got a three-month suspension for haranguing a fourth official.
    — Tom Williams, New York Times, 17 May 2026
  • While American pundits wrote haranguing op-eds warning that the breaking of diplomatic precedent would prompt China to escalate war, ordinary people in Taiwan celebrated.
    — Michelle Kuo, The Dial, 14 Apr. 2026
Definition of harangue
Verb
  • He was internationally known as an expert on the work of William Faulkner, teaching and lecturing around the world on the Nobel Prize winner.
    — Rebecca McCarthy, AJC.com, 13 July 2026
  • Parsipur taught at Brown University in the early 2000s and lectured internationally throughout the ensuing decades.
    — News Desk, Artforum, 13 July 2026
Definition of lecture
Verb
  • The Open Meeting Act prohibits directors from discussing (or orating) on matters not disclosed on the agenda, per Civil Code Section 4930(a).
    — Kelly G. Richardson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 15 July 2025
  • The latter went on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert and orated about his marathon oration sesh last week in Congress.
    — Bethy Squires, Vulture, 11 Apr. 2025
Definition of orate
Verb
  • Never mind that Canales doesn’t speak Spanish himself — the way that Telemundo announcers start talking faster as the action on the pitch intensifies is its own kind of language.
    — Harmeet Kaur, CNN Money, 16 July 2026
  • Now’s the time for the Party to think about it—potential pairings have a little time to court one another—and to start talking themselves into the idea that this could be rewarding and even kind of fun.
    — Bill McKibben, New Yorker, 16 July 2026
Definition of talk
Verb
  • Specifically, the majority of debate and discourse around the CLARITY Act centers around not only the ability of stablecoin issues to provide yield and yield adjacent products, but how these institutions should be regulated.
    — Sean Stein Smith, Forbes.com, 30 June 2026
  • This lucidity not only makes his work readable but also staves off the perception that discourse about UFOs and the CIA must be riddled with conspiratorial paranoia.
    — Louis Bury, ARTnews.com, 1 May 2026
Definition of discourse

Browse Nearby Words

decks (out)
declaim
declaimed
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Cite this Entry

“Declaim.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/declaim. Accessed 18 Jul. 2026.

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