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
Synonyms & Similar Words
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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
While every member of the FOMC is aware of this rhetoric, Michelle Bowman has been the most recent to flag the issue.
—
Eleanor Pringle, Fortune, 11 Aug. 2025
But Trump threatened similar actions in Chicago and Los Angeles and has aimed his rhetoric at Detroit in the past.
—Paul Egan, Freep.com, 11 Aug. 2025
First, the rhetoric threatens to reignite the right-wing culture war that dominated Florida politics in 2022 and 2023.
—Orlando Sentinel, The Orlando Sentinel, 8 Aug. 2025
This is fueled by misinformation, a growing distrust in government health authorities and the amplification of anti-vac rhetoric in social media and the popular news outlets.
—Armstrong Williams, Baltimore Sun, 2 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for rhetoric
Eleanor Pringle, Fortune, 11 Aug. 2025
But Trump threatened similar actions in Chicago and Los Angeles and has aimed his rhetoric at Detroit in the past.
—Paul Egan, Freep.com, 11 Aug. 2025
First, the rhetoric threatens to reignite the right-wing culture war that dominated Florida politics in 2022 and 2023.
—Orlando Sentinel, The Orlando Sentinel, 8 Aug. 2025
This is fueled by misinformation, a growing distrust in government health authorities and the amplification of anti-vac rhetoric in social media and the popular news outlets.
—Armstrong Williams, Baltimore Sun, 2 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for rhetoric
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rhetoric
Noun
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Erin strengthened into a Category 4 storm with maximum sustained winds of 140 mph, according to an advisory Monday afternoon from the National Hurricane Center.—
Rebecca Morin,
USA Today,
19 Aug. 2025
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Calm wind becoming north around 5 mph in the afternoon.—
Kaycee Sloan,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
18 Aug. 2025
Noun
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The bulk of the day would be musical, but the recognition of the Haight’s roots in Beat poetry was essential.—
Dennis McNally,
Rolling Stone,
7 Aug. 2025
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In the kitchens of Palestine there is a kind of quiet poetry.—
Sami Tamimi
August 6,
Literary Hub,
6 Aug. 2025
Noun
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While countless users dismissed the theories as nonsense, the dog pile had begun causing the hot takes to go viral.—
Chris Gardner,
HollywoodReporter,
15 Aug. 2025
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Bon Jovi’s team dismissed word of the tour as nonsense.—
Brian Niemietz,
New York Daily News,
14 Aug. 2025
Noun
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South Carolina: The GE Appliances plant in Camden, South Carolina currently produces gas water heaters.—
Olivia Evans,
The Courier-Journal,
13 Aug. 2025
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In 1989, Jones would buy the Dallas Cowboys for $140 million after finding success in oil and gas exploration.—
Jacob Feldman,
Sportico.com,
13 Aug. 2025
Noun
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Sheila Jordan, a largely underappreciated voice in jazz, died yesterday at the age of 96.—
Brittney Melton,
NPR,
12 Aug. 2025
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Even in her 90s, her easily flitting vocals astounded, bouncing from deep valleys to breathy peaks, and, like the best jazz, mimicking the volatility and joy of the human spirit.—
Anna Kaufman,
USA Today,
12 Aug. 2025
Noun
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Known for his extraordinary oratory skills, everyone who has been around Levy has a story to tell about his Marvisms and motivational speeches.—
Tim Graham,
New York Times,
1 Aug. 2025
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Hugo would likely have been repelled and fascinated by Trump’s demagoguery, his rambling mendacity, his grammatically illogical but easy-to-follow oratory.—
Graham Robb,
The Atlantic,
9 June 2025
Noun
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For all his bombast online, for instance, Marcus has said that today’s chatbots are a legitimate breakthrough, just far from the breakthrough; for all of Altman’s petulance, OpenAI’s latest large reasoning models rely on new approaches not so dissimilar from Marcus’s own, decades-old ideas.—
Matteo Wong,
The Atlantic,
8 July 2025
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Pacino not only opted for the lesser beard, but also plays his bespectacled character without bombast.—
Bryan Alexander,
USA Today,
6 June 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 22 Aug. 2025.
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