as in rhetorical
formal
expressing feelings or opinions in a way that is loud and forceful
Her declamatory manner of speech inspired some but irritated others. declamatory speeches/statements
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Recent Examples of declamatory
The cast features nonprofessional actors drawn from the area; their declamatory style of performance, along with Mateus’s hieratic images, endow the movie’s dramatic realism with the power of myth.
19.
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Justin Chang, New Yorker, 5 Dec. 2025
Yet the power in these two performances isn’t supplemented by much texture in the stern, declamatory writing: There’s little sense of how this relationship functions, or once functioned, outside these particularly fraught scenes.
—Guy Lodge, Variety, 9 Aug. 2025
The music is stark, declamatory, and ironic in its use of gentler major-key harmonies for some of the darkest lines.
—Alex Ross, The New Yorker, 3 Feb. 2025
The main theme, a declamatory seven-note figure, later becomes the basis for a fantastical cadenza on vibraphone, played poetically by Yeh.
—Hannah Edgar, Chicago Tribune, 31 May 2024
See All Example Sentences for declamatory
Justin Chang, New Yorker, 5 Dec. 2025
Yet the power in these two performances isn’t supplemented by much texture in the stern, declamatory writing: There’s little sense of how this relationship functions, or once functioned, outside these particularly fraught scenes.
—Guy Lodge, Variety, 9 Aug. 2025
The music is stark, declamatory, and ironic in its use of gentler major-key harmonies for some of the darkest lines.
—Alex Ross, The New Yorker, 3 Feb. 2025
The main theme, a declamatory seven-note figure, later becomes the basis for a fantastical cadenza on vibraphone, played poetically by Yeh.
—Hannah Edgar, Chicago Tribune, 31 May 2024
See All Example Sentences for declamatory
Recent Examples of Synonyms for declamatory
Adjective
-
The Four Freedoms Roosevelt named were not rhetorical ornaments offered as inspiration so much as a diagnosis.—
Philip Martin,
Washington Post,
7 Jan. 2026
-
Most Venezuelans who are smart recognize that this is a rhetorical device.—
Isaac Chotiner,
New Yorker,
5 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Gosling has a way of retreating into a silence more emotionally eloquent than the film’s occasionally clunky dialogue.—
Theater Critic,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Jan. 2026
-
Off-screen, the eloquent preteen has been charming moviegoers at film festivals and Q&As over the past few months.—
Patrick Ryan,
USA Today,
1 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
These succulent fruits can be baked into a pie, used as a garnish, or even served as a stately centerpiece.—
Helena Madden,
Martha Stewart,
6 Jan. 2026
-
Kitten heels are certainly prevalent among royal family members and politicians, but their popularity has extended beyond the stately sphere as well.—
Jaden Thompson,
Footwear News,
6 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
But those struggles remain offscreen; Naïma’s season at the shelter is coming to an end, and the movie, graceful yet pragmatic, knows that not every story here can be told.—
Justin Chang,
New Yorker,
2 Jan. 2026
-
Her entry into this world was graceful, gentle and oh so magical.—
Emily Weaver,
PEOPLE,
30 Dec. 2025
Adjective
-
Gothic visuals and bombastic performances are sure to pull horror buffs into Penny Dreadful's world.—
James Mercadante,
Entertainment Weekly,
4 Jan. 2026
-
Trump’s rhetoric, if unusually bombastic, even unsettling, was nonetheless bound by existing institutions.—
Jason Blakely,
Harpers Magazine,
30 Dec. 2025
Adjective
-
Speaking of which, the concept of royalty among members of PFV is no exaggeration, though some of the blue blood flowing through members’ veins is merely aristocratic.—
Mike DeSimone,
Robb Report,
27 Dec. 2025
-
Once owned by Perugia’s noble Raspanti family and later part of the Porta Eburnea district, the estate gradually transformed from a defensive outpost into an aristocratic country residence.—
Laura May Todd,
Vogue,
21 Dec. 2025
Adjective
-
The Dallas area was a hotbed of competitive debate, and, at first, the oratorical polish of Kuang’s teammates was intimidating.—
Hua Hsu,
New Yorker,
18 Aug. 2025
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Chicago-based like the Jacksons — the play originated at the Steppenwolf Theater Company in that city — they, too, are headed by an oratorical pastor who, in his youth, worked closely with the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.—
Jesse Green,
New York Times,
18 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Declamatory.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/declamatory. Accessed 13 Jan. 2026.
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