excoriate

verb

ek-ˈskȯr-ē-ˌāt How to pronounce excoriate (audio)
Definition of excoriatenext
1
as in to attack
to criticize harshly and usually publicly the mayor had hardly been in office for a month before she was being excoriated for problems of very long standing

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to irritate
to make sore by continued rubbing the manacles had badly excoriated the prisoner's wrists

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 excoriate Acton and other Democrats, as well as some Republicans, have excoriated Ramaswamy for the ad and for bringing up his opponent's childhood trauma. — ABC News, 21 Oct. 2026 Australia’s prime minister, for example, excoriated OpenAI and Altman for failing to alert officials in a timely manner that an agent had targeted a government health website. — Robert Hart, The Verge, 5 Oct. 2026 Several readers have spoken of appreciation for the columns of mine that intersected sports and society, such as excoriating the NFL for its blackballing of Colin Kaepernick. — Miami Herald, 25 Sep. 2026 Martin Sherman’s play Bent (1979), an excoriating account of the Nazi persecution of homosexuals that is also a story of love between two men in the most terrible circumstances, belongs to this select category. — Simon Callow, The New York Review of Books, 19 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for excoriate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for excoriate
  1. attack
  2. irritate
  3. scold
  4. slam
  5. criticize
  6. insult
Verb
  • Hawley said the majority of conflicts between humans and coyotes occurs when a pet owner tries to save their pet from an attacking coyote.
    — Stephen Underwood, Hartford Courant, 2 Nov. 2026
  • Running as the populist candidate, Brown has repeatedly attacked Husted as the face of data centers in the state and pushed to take on Silicon Valley if elected to office again.
    — Mabinty Quarshie, The Washington Examiner, 2 Nov. 2026
Definition of attack
Verb
  • That mismatch can lead to issues ranging from irritating residue to expensive repairs.
    — Mary Cornetta, Better Homes & Gardens, 4 Nov. 2026
  • These extra steps are irritating, as non-Amazon ereaders tend to be much more forgiving when loading your own media.
    — Will Greenwald, PC Magazine, 4 Nov. 2026
Definition of irritate
Verb
  • Abe doesn’t like that Erin scolded him at his party about spilling his drink and not helping with the kids, and Erin is frustrated that none of her children will listen to her.
    — Brian Moylan, Vulture, 4 Nov. 2026
  • In a video shared by De La Espriella’s office Tuesday, the president scolds some of the suspects captured by police.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 27 Oct. 2026
Definition of scold
Verb
  • Over the summer, Raman slammed Bass for pausing a bike lane and street safety improvement project near two cemeteries along Forest Lawn Drive that had come under fire by some in Raman’s district.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 6 Nov. 2026
  • The great danger, though, and one that fully manifests here, is that speechifying like Claire’s slams up against the fourth wall and ricochets back at her.
    — Sara Holdren, Vulture, 6 Nov. 2026
Definition of slam
Verb
  • Piker is staunchly opposed to Israel and has been criticized for his comments about Jewish Americans.
    — Claire Carter, The Washington Examiner, 3 Nov. 2026
  • He has also been criticized by some in the community for past remarks regarding a Michigan synagogue attack and for appearances with controversial streamer Hasan Piker.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 2 Nov. 2026
Definition of criticize
Verb
  • Under Milei and Lula, Argentina and Brazil have had a rocky relationship, which took a decisive turn for the worse in July when Brazil recalled its ambassador to Argentina after Milei insulted Brazilian officials while in the country.
    — Eléonore Hughes, Los Angeles Times, 31 Oct. 2026
  • Calling this all-wheel-drive EX-L a dog would insult geriatric, three-legged canines everywhere.
    — Byron Hurd, The Drive, 29 Oct. 2026
Definition of insult

Browse Nearby Words

excommunications
excoriate
excoriated
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“Excoriate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/excoriate. Accessed 10 Nov. 2026.

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