philippics

noun

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

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for philippics
  1. attacks
  2. criticisms
  3. tirades
  4. jeremiads
  5. diatribes
  6. rants
  7. harangues
  8. sermons
Noun
  • Monday's attacks on a shelter and former school with bunker-busting bombs came as people were lined up for aid in Komyshuvakha, a village in the Zaporizhzhia region.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 4 Nov. 2026
  • Russia ramped up its aerial attacks on towns and cities across the country over the summer, striking at all times of the day.
    — Ivana Kottasová, CNN Money, 3 Nov. 2026
Definition of attacks
Noun
  • For voters susceptible to these kinds of criticisms of Talarico, a Paxton rally provides a potent narrative.
    — Aidan McLaughlin, Vanity Fair, 30 Oct. 2026
  • One of the big criticisms that Meta and other social-media companies face is that their algorithms tend to incentivize edgy, shocking content.
    — Austin Elias-de Jesus, New Yorker, 26 Oct. 2026
Definition of criticisms
Noun
  • Oasis frontman Liam Gallagher went on one of his bad-boy tirades during a performance at the 1996 show by swearing, wandering the stage and making lewd gestures during his brother Noel’s guitar solo.
    — Kate Hogan, PEOPLE, 24 Sep. 2026
  • This tradition viewed progressive nationalism as using promises of reform and demagogic tirades against scapegoats abroad to distract from their own corruption and irresponsibility.
    — Andre Pagliarini, The Conversation, 22 Sep. 2026
Definition of tirades
Noun
  • The question, of course, is what we are supposed to do with these bourgeois jeremiads against bourgeois civilization, beyond enjoying them as high-end primal-scream therapy.
    — Alex Ross, New Yorker, 15 June 2026
Definition of jeremiads
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
  • Design After endless diatribes about the quirky lines of Ferrari’s all-electric Luce, the marque’s enthusiasts will find that the Amalfi Spider’s long-hood, raked-screen, and open-top lines are comfortingly familiar and unquestionably gorgeous.
    — Howard Walker, Robb Report, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of diatribes
Noun
  • Because China’s system is tightly controlled, its descent into personalistic one-man rule does not play out in divisive confrontations on television or erratic social media rants by the top leader.
    — Carl Minzner, Foreign Affairs, 5 Oct. 2026
  • The residents occasionally gather in a disused rec center but the meetings devolve into rants about immigrants, junkies, thugs and vigilantism.
    — Jessica Kiang, Variety, 26 Sep. 2026
Definition of rants
Noun
  • The movie is an epic series of harrumphs and harangues, propelled from room to room—and, in time, out into the world beyond the estate—by a spirit of impudent absurdism and corrosive cynicism which seems to emanate from Digger himself.
    — Justin Chang, New Yorker, 30 Sep. 2026
  • 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
Definition of harangues
Noun
  • His apocalyptic sermons taught that his followers and their children should starve themselves to death to get into heaven before the end of the world, per Reuters.
    — Latoya Gayle, PEOPLE, 20 Oct. 2026
  • Bakker offered upbeat sermons and Tammy Faye, charismatic and always wearing her trademark heavy mascara, sang.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 7 Oct. 2026
Definition of sermons
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.

Browse Nearby Words

philippic
philippics
philistine
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Philippics.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/philippics. Accessed 5 Nov. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of effrontery

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

7 Words for Old-Timey Vehicles

Ten More Words from Taylor Swift Songs

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
couple-laugh-cafe
Quiz: Foreign Phrases You Should Know Check out your bona fides and avoid any faux pas.
See All