Did you know?
The letter sequence "v-e-r-b" in reverberate might make you think at first of such word-related brethren as proverb, verbal, and verbose, all of which derive from the Latin noun verbum, meaning "word." In fact, reverberate comes from a much different source: the Latin verb verberare, meaning "to whip, beat, or lash," which is related to the noun verber, meaning "rod." Reverberate entered the English language in the 15th century, and one of its early meanings was "to beat, drive, or cast back." By the early 1600s, it began to appear in contexts associated with sound that repeats or returns the way an echo does.
Examples of reverberate in a Sentence
Declan Gallagher, Entertainment Weekly, 11 Apr. 2026
The allegations quickly reverberated through the governor’s race, where some polls showed Swalwell with a lead among Democrats.
—Lia Russell, Sacbee.com, 11 Apr. 2026
The announcement that Yusef Jackson would take over as the coalition’s president and CEO comes nearly two months after his father’s death reverberated across the country.
—Tess Kenny, Chicago Tribune, 10 Apr. 2026
The echo reverberates, the force of each choke conjuring a body in painful contraction.
—Courtney Crowder, USA Today, 10 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for reverberate
Cite this Entry
“Reverberate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/reverberate. Accessed 12 Apr. 2026.
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