exhortation

[eg-zawr-tey-shuhn, ek-sawr-]

noun

1. the act or process of exhorting.

2. an utterance, discourse, or address conveying urgent advice or recommendations.

Other Word Forms

• nonexhortation noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of exhortation¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English exhortacioun, from Latin exhortātiōn- (stem of exhortātiō ) “a pleading, urging.” See exhortative, -ion

Synonym Study

See advice.

Example Sentences

The times, then and now, the book implies, call for vehement exhortation.

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“When you grow up in poverty, you grow up in survival mode,” she says in one of several direct exhortations to the audience.

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It’s an exhortation and an anthem — “Be the rain you remember falling” — the emotional peak of a song cycle about a girl named Sun Green who’s trying to save the Earth.

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His exhortations for people to value Mexican cuisine and the people who make it was essential in an era where too many Americans love the former and loathe the latter.

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That said, even if some of Gilbert’s analysis feels 10 years out of date, it is nonetheless a reminder of where we come from as a culture, and a reinvigorating exhortation not to return there.

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Related Words

• admonition 
• encouragement 
• entreaty 
• sermon