declamatory
Americanadjective
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pertaining to or characterized by declamation.
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merely oratorical or rhetorical; stilted.
a pompous, declamatory manner of speech.
adjective
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relating to or having the characteristics of a declamation
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merely rhetorical; empty and bombastic
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of declamatory
1575–85; < Latin dēclāmātōrius, equivalent to dēclāmā ( re ) ( see declaim) + -tōrius -tory 1
Explanation
If you say something declamatory, it's full of passion and bluster, like your declamatory speech in debate club about the poor nutritional quality of your school's lunches. Things that are declamatory are strongly felt and expressed with intensity, and they're usually spoken aloud (and loudly). Sometimes this adjective has negative connotations, implying bluster and bombast: "Your essay is so long and declamatory, I felt like I was being shouted at by a showoff." Something declamatory can be called a declamation. The Latin root, declamare, means "to practice public speaking."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
These sound particularly good in Morgan’s mouth, with his non-actory, declamatory way of speaking.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 23, 2026
The characters speak in dramatic, declamatory French, as if in a 19th-century play, and their costumes range from corseted dresses and shabby tailcoats to power suits and leather jackets.
From New York Times ● Jun. 2, 2023
Aldridge favored a relatively realistic approach — a striking contrast to the more declamatory, posturing star turns then in vogue.
From Washington Post ● Jun. 21, 2022
And that's on top of the condemnations online and on television, the boycotts and the declamatory emails from universities, banks and corporations.
From Salon ● Mar. 19, 2022
It gives power to change attention and suggests degrees of subjectivity, and thus tends to prevent the true spirit of the poem from being destroyed by oratorical or declamatory effects.
From Browning and the Dramatic Monologue by Curry, S. S. (Samuel Silas)
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
