diatribe

American  

[dahy-uh-trahyb] / ˈdaɪ əˌtraɪb /

noun

• diatribes
  plural

1. 

   a bitter, sharply abusive denunciation, attack, or criticism.

   repeated diatribes against the senator.

   Synonyms:

   harangue, tirade

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diatribe British  

/ ˈdaɪəˌtraɪb /

noun

1. a bitter or violent criticism or attack; denunciation

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• diatribes
  plural

Etymology

Origin of diatribe

1575–85; < Latin diatriba < Greek diatribḗ pastime, study, discourse, derivative of diatríbein to rub away ( dia- dia- + tríbein to rub)

Explanation

It's pretty overwhelming when you ask your friend a seemingly innocuous question, like "Do you like hot dogs?" and she unleashes a diatribe about the evils of eating meat. A diatribe is an angry, critical speech. This noun has its roots in the Greek diatribē, "pastime or lecture," from diatrībein, "to waste time or wear away," combining dia-, "thoroughly," and trībein, "to rub." So the origin of the word diatribe is connected to both serious study and the spending or wasting of time. With most diatribes, the speaker thinks he's well informed and knows something the listener doesn't, while to most listeners the diatribe is so angry and unhinged that it's just a waste of time.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

diatribe diatribes

Havelock re-encounters Jordan years after the attack and finds himself caught in the firehose spray of a diatribe.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 25, 2026

Japan's defence ministry declined to comment directly on Kim Yo Jong's Wednesday diatribe but said the country's defence capabilities "remain bare minimum" and "are not meant to threaten other countries".

From Barron's ● Aug. 6, 2026

Anyway, the part of his diatribe about congested urban areas and highbrow people is why I cited that quote, because it is an unobstructed view into his mindset.

From Salon ● Mar. 23, 2026

Smith said his comments were directed at the Pelicans’ social media team, although he did not hesitate to point out the organization’s shortcomings during his diatribe.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 4, 2026

Her mother told her not to worry and launched into a diatribe about the medical technologies of the seventies until Alma interrupted her.

From "The Other Wes Moore: One Name, Two Fates" by Wes Moore

During the war, he baffled international negotiators with rambling diatribes on Serbian history.

From Barron's ● Aug. 27, 2026

Others, such as Shawn Michaels, say there's not much difference between the two, and WWE executive Bruce Prichard says Mr McMahon's in-ring diatribes were similar to the ones he'd deliver in the board room.

From BBC ● Sep. 26, 2024

Her works achieve the difficult feat of synthesizing a coma-inducing dullness with piercingly shrill extended diatribes to create reverse masterpieces worthy of the most risible North Korean propaganda.

From Salon ● Sep. 7, 2024

David Gottesman, known as Sandy, an investor and early acolyte of Warren Buffett’s, was not a creature of Page Six or TV, of divorce settlements, $500 million yachts, Davos or social-media diatribes.

From Seattle Times ● Mar. 2, 2024

Several long, incoherent diatribes from gunters whose quest for the egg had clearly driven them insane.

From "Ready Player One: A Novel" by Ernest Cline

Related Words

• denunciation
• invective
• jeremiad
• screed
• tirade