Thesaurus
variants:
also rhetoric
Synonyms & Antonyms of rhetorical
1
marked by the use of impressive-sounding but mostly meaningless words and phrases
- you can skip over the rhetorical passages and still get the gist of the essay
Synonyms for rhetorical
Words Related to rhetorical
- bloated,
- elevated,
- florid,
- flowery,
- grandiose,
- highfalutin
- (also hifalutin),
- high-flown,
- high-sounding,
- inflated,
- lofty,
- ornate,
- pompous,
- pontifical,
- pretentious,
- stilted,
- tumid,
- turgid
Near Antonyms for rhetorical
Antonyms for rhetorical
2
full of fine words and fancy expressions
- the new governor delivered a long rhetorical speech about our state's bright future but laid out no specific programs for ensuring it
Synonyms for rhetorical
- aureate,
- florid,
- flowery,
- grandiloquent,
- high-flown,
- high-sounding,
- highfalutin
- (also hifalutin),
- magnific,
- ornate,
- purple
Words Related to rhetorical
Near Antonyms for rhetorical
3
of or relating to words or language
- the next war that those two nations fight won't be rhetorical—it will be with bombs and bullets
Synonyms for rhetorical
- lexical,
- linguistic
- (also linguistical),
- verbal,
- vocabular,
- wordy
Words Related to rhetorical
Antonyms for rhetorical
Keep scrolling for more
Learn More About rhetorical
Cite this Entry
“Rhetorical.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rhetorical. Accessed 28 Sep. 2021.
Style: MLA
MLA
Chicago
APA
Merriam-Webster
Chicago
APA
Merriam-Webster
Test Your Vocabulary
Difficult Spelling Words Quiz
-
- Which is the correct spelling?
Test your vocabulary with our 10-question quiz!
TAKE THE QUIZLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Words at Play
Ask the Editors
Share rhetorical
Time Traveler for rhetorical
The first known use of rhetorical was in the 15th century
See more words from the same century