rhetoric
/ˈɹɛtəɹɪk/ noun, adjective
Forms rhetorics rhetorick
- noun The art of using language, especially public speaking, as a means to persuade.
- noun (sometimes derogatory) Meaningless language with an exaggerated style intended to impress. “It’s only so much rhetoric.”
- adjective Synonym of rhetorical.
Synonyms
speechcraft wordcraft rhetorical grandiosity magniloquence ornateness grandiloquence palaver hot air empty words empty talk
Etymology
Ancient Greek ῥητορῐκή τέχνη (rhētorĭkḗ tékhnē)ellip.
Ancient Greek ῥητορικὴ (rhētorikḕ)bor.
Inherited from Middle English rhetorik, rhetoric, borrowed from Old French rhetorique, borrowed from Latin rhētorica, borrowed from Ancient Greek ῥητορικὴ (rhētorikḕ), ellipsis of ῥητορῐκή τέχνη (rhētorĭkḗ tékhnē).
Inherited from Middle English rhetorik, borrowed from Old French rhetorique, borrowed from Latin rhētoricus, borrowed from Ancient Greek ῥητορικός (rhētorikós), from ῥήτωρ (rhḗtōr, “public speaker”) + -ῐκός (-ĭkós). By surface analysis, rhetor + -ic.
Webster’s 1913
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “rhetoric”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details