PHILIPPIC Synonyms: 58 Similar and Opposite Words

philippic

noun

fə-ˈli-pik

Definition of philippic

as in jeremiad

a long angry speech or scolding the head coach was briefly suspended after launching into a foul-mouthed philippic during a press conference

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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 philippic The Atlantic’s second issue included a thunderous philippic of some 7,600 words on the relentless encroachments of slavery and the fate of the Republic. — Jake Lundberg, The Atlantic, 12 Feb. 2026 How not to hear in his philippic the traces of an OCD inscribed in our cultural DNA, a sanctimony that launched the archetypal act of avoidance that forms our origin myth? — Andrew Kay, Harpers Magazine, 28 May 2025 The poet’s occasional philippics against capitalist excess are hard to distinguish from postwar politics, when former allies became lethal enemies, while in America the Red Scare of McCarthyism loomed. — William Logan, New York Times, 11 Apr. 2025 While its always welcome to see additional news outlets in the battle for truth, justice and the American way, this philippic certainly doesn’t deserve to be taken seriously as a dispenser of information. — Charles Selle, Chicago Tribune, 19 Sep. 2022

Recent Examples of Synonyms for philippic

Noun

My Fortune colleague Nick Lichtenberg had a good story on why the resignation jeremiad of former Anthropic and OpenAI safety researcher Jacob Coxon had such impact when previous warnings, often from much higher-profile individuals, did not.

— Jeremy Kahn, Fortune, 15 Sep. 2026
Kelaidis reads their popularity as evidence that historical scholarship has become a kind of liberal jeremiad, offering moral reassurance through historical analogy.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 23 July 2026

Definition of jeremiad

Noun

The two agreed that Springsteen's penchant in recent years for going on mid-concert political diatribes is wearing a little thin.

— Matt Reigle OutKick, FOXNews.com, 9 Sep. 2026
This is the part of the topic where some writers would launch into a diatribe on exotic invasive plants, aka plant species that did not naturally evolve in the local area but were introduced (either intentionally or not) by human activity.

— Paul Cappiello, Louisville Courier Journal, 14 Aug. 2026

Definition of diatribe

Noun

Ukraine's State Emergency Service said Tuesday that Russian strikes on Kyiv had killed one person and wounded seven other people since the start of the day, with attacks carried out on the capital's gas stations.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 16 Sep. 2026
The number of products deployed or dollars spent says little about an organization’s ability to withstand an attack.

— Shane Buckley, Forbes.com, 15 Sep. 2026

Definition of attack

Noun

Vucic has pushed hard against the protesters as the government faced international criticism over police violence and arbitrary detentions of demonstrators.

— ABC News, ABC News, 5 Sep. 2026
His political interests would be served if Republicans were to stop attacking Carlson and if Carlson were to tone down his criticism of the GOP.

— Jonathan Chait, The Atlantic, 5 Sep. 2026

Definition of criticism

Noun

Stephen Adly Guirgis, a New York playwright who specializes in urban pressure-cooker dramas, has a gift for writing subway strap-hanger harangues.

— Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 29 Apr. 2026
The Americans were prepared for a lecture from Russia’s longtime foreign minister, Sergey Lavrov, who is well known for his tedious harangues.

— Michael Crowley, New York Times, 21 Feb. 2025

Definition of harangue

Noun

This is given an almost mystical significance, made all the more ridiculous when an actual priest gives a sermon using the brothers as an object lesson in the value of forgiveness.

— Damon Wise, Deadline, 5 Sep. 2026
At issue is a 2022 sermon, reposted on X after Hamilton won the Democratic primary in August.

— John Hanna, Los Angeles Times, 2 Sep. 2026

Definition of sermon

Browse Nearby Words

philharmonics

philippic

philippics

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“Philippic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/philippic. Accessed 17 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of philippic

noun

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