1
as in wind
language that is impressive-sounding but not meaningful or sincere
the mayor's promise to fight drugs was just rhetoric, since there was no money in the city budget for a drug program
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2
as in poetry
the art or power of speaking or writing in a forceful and convincing way
great leaders have often been masters of rhetoric, which they have used for both good and ill
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of rhetoric
Leaders from both nations face mounting public pressure to show strength and seek revenge, and the heated rhetoric and competing claims could be a response to that pressure.
—
Sheikh Saaliq, Chicago Tribune, 8 May 2025
Escalating rhetoric between the two countries have roiled markets and added much uncertainty to the economy.
—Medora Lee, USA Today, 8 May 2025
Organizers place the blame for what currently is a $200,000 shortfall directly on the anti-DEI (diversity, equity, inclusion) and anti-LGBTQIA+ rhetoric that has emanated from President Donald Trump’s White House.
—Eric Adler, Kansas City Star, 7 May 2025
But Kaplan, the book author, believes that rhetoric is simply a negotiating tactic and that some level of U.S. influence in Ukraine will be enduring.
—David Catanese, Miami Herald, 6 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for rhetoric
Sheikh Saaliq, Chicago Tribune, 8 May 2025
Escalating rhetoric between the two countries have roiled markets and added much uncertainty to the economy.
—Medora Lee, USA Today, 8 May 2025
Organizers place the blame for what currently is a $200,000 shortfall directly on the anti-DEI (diversity, equity, inclusion) and anti-LGBTQIA+ rhetoric that has emanated from President Donald Trump’s White House.
—Eric Adler, Kansas City Star, 7 May 2025
But Kaplan, the book author, believes that rhetoric is simply a negotiating tactic and that some level of U.S. influence in Ukraine will be enduring.
—David Catanese, Miami Herald, 6 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for rhetoric
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rhetoric
Noun
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Earth tornadoes are formed by intense winds and move around leaving destruction in their path, however, those on the solar surface are entirely different.—
Maria Azzurra Volpe,
MSNBC Newsweek,
14 May 2025
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According to the Nevada Department of Wildlife, mallards can fly 55 miles per hour while migrating, or faster when flying in the direction of the wind.—
Rachel Raposas,
People.com,
14 May 2025
Noun
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Hideko Takamine stars as Fumiko, a poor young woman who does manual labor and works as a bar hostess while writing poetry and prose that confront her struggle to survive alongside the feckless and brutal men in her life.—
Hilton Als,
New Yorker,
16 May 2025
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This week, Denim Tears unveils Sweet Corner, a nostalgic, deeply personal collection rooted in the everyday poetry of Jamaica, Queens.—
Karissa Mitchell,
Essence,
14 May 2025
Noun
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Everyone will be there — except Lydia, who Joseph dispatches on a nonsense errand to D.C.—
Amanda Whiting,
Vulture,
6 May 2025
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The sequel has more glamour, more trouble and maybe a bit too much nonsense 1 Comments The first Simple Favor, from 2018, was a playful, shallow mystery most notable for casting the lovely, languid Blake Lively as a cynical, devious clothes horse named Emily Nelson.—
Tom Gliatto,
People.com,
30 Apr. 2025
Noun
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In Texas, the problem is exacerbated by pumping of oil and gas, the study says.—
Doyle Rice,
USA Today,
9 May 2025
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That’s because much of it is largely based on oil and gas revenues that account for over 30% of Kazakhstan’s GDP and over 75% of its exports.—
Gaurav Sharma,
Forbes.com,
9 May 2025
Noun
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Not yet ready to give up on music, Golden dabbled in music journalism throughout the Seventies, writing for Rolling Stone and Creem, and took up residence singing jazz at Clifford’s Lounge on the Upper West Side.—
Jeff Gage,
Rolling Stone,
20 May 2025
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Problem is, Chisholm himself knew nothing about jazz.—
Hannah Edgar,
Chicago Tribune,
19 May 2025
Noun
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On Friday, as the Rams prepared for the second night of the draft, McVay used his oratory skills before another assemblage of pros.—
Gary Klein,
Los Angeles Times,
26 Apr. 2025
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Revisiting ancient Greek oratory and today’s communication courses, speaking has obviously been prioritized over listening.—
Tyler Shepherd,
USA TODAY,
10 Jan. 2025
Noun
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The Picture of Dorian Gray review: Sarah Snook stuns in slick reinvention of Oscar Wilde's cautionary tale The biggest jolts of energy come from Murrow’s push-and-pull meetings with CBS president William F. Paley (played in full bombast mode by Paul Gross).—
EW.com,
EW.com,
4 Apr. 2025
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Donald Trump is threatening to use economic force to annex Canada, and Canadians are expected to go to the polls within weeks to decide who will guard the net—Carney or Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, whose populist bombast is unusually intense for Canadian politics.—
Stephen Maher,
TIME,
9 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Much of that singularity was centered in McCarthy’s prose, which ricocheted—sometimes gracefully, sometimes jarringly—between gruff matter-of-factness and soaring, biblical grandiloquence.—
Alex Shephard,
The New Republic,
13 June 2023
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Several of them can fly, and all have at least a touch of grandiloquence to them.—
Michael Nordine,
Variety,
11 Aug. 2022
Cite this Entry
“Rhetoric.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rhetoric. Accessed 24 May. 2025.
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