exhort
Americanverb (used with object)
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exhorts,
present (3rd person singular)
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exhorted,
past participle, past
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exhorting
present participle
verb (used without object)
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exhorts,
present (3rd person singular)
-
exhorted,
past participle, past
-
exhorting
present participle
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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exhortsimple
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exhortssimple
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have exhortedperfect
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has exhortedperfect
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am exhortingprogressive
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are exhortingprogressive
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is exhortingprogressive
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have been exhortingperfect progressive
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has been exhortingperfect progressive
Past
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exhortedsimple
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had exhortedperfect
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was exhortingprogressive
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were exhortingprogressive
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had been exhortingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of exhort
First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English ex(h)orte, from Latin exhortārī “to encourage greatly,” from ex- ex- 1 + hortārī “to encourage, urge”
Explanation
French roots for the word exhort mean "thoroughly encourage," so to exhort is to fill up with encouragement! "When he heard the crowd exhort him with stomping and cheers, he knew that he could finish the marathon." Some synonyms for exhort include stimulate, excite, and urge on. Words and shouts can exhort, and this is especially true when the recipient of those chants fears coming up short with an effort. Exhortations may make the difference between winning or losing and marching on or giving up. A sergeant might exhort his troops after a defeat just as a dad can exhort his daughter after a missed note during a piano recital.
Vocabulary lists containing exhort
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The Scarlet Letter
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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.
See Examples For:
The performance casts such a spell of suggestive truthfulness that I had to exhort myself to pay attention to the other fine actors around her.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 11, 2024
There was a time when he would commonly exhort Congress to pass border legislation:
From Salon ● Feb. 7, 2024
Her story appeared in Chinese social media despite digital and human censors and prompted commentators to exhort national media to highlight the scandal.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 7, 2023
Experts exhort producers to practice biosecurity, but Rembrandt was.
From Washington Post ● Jan. 13, 2023
He would exhort her and he would tell her all that was in his heart and still she was gentle.
From "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter" by Carson McCullers
Her best friend, Max, who was unofficially adopted by Suzanna’s parents and is shellacked in cynicism as played by the excellent Alden Ehrenreich, exhorts her to pull herself together and face her “big girl problems.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 7, 2026
On record, “Express Yourself” is a battering ram of industrial-funk encouragement; it exhorts the listener to create his or her own destiny.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 5, 2024
Around every bend are tiny rewards - a copse of trees with the Olympic rings poking out, a tiny reflecting-pool shrine that exhorts people to “remember here those who gave their lives for peace.”
From Washington Times ● Sep. 23, 2023
Around every bend are tiny rewards — a copse of trees with the Olympic rings poking out, a tiny reflecting-pool shrine that exhorts people to “remember here those who gave their lives for peace.”
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 23, 2023
There’s nothing to do but try to ignore the nasty stuff soaking my foot and, as Ted exhorts us, work through it.
From "Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America" by Barbara Ehrenreich
Until then, he exhorted his students to control their own destinies, likening AI personalization to the rudder on a sailboat.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 18, 2026
“How will she remember this?” she exhorted her students.
From New York Times ● Apr. 25, 2024
The imperative of continuing hefty Western military and financial assistance to Ukraine was underscored repeatedly by Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky, who exhorted participants to act, as he rushed from one high-level meeting to the next.
From BBC ● Feb. 18, 2024
In doing so, they exhorted their audience to confront these issues head-on, echoing the stoic ideal of facing opposition with fortitude and resilience.
From Salon ● Jan. 30, 2024
King went on to promise the students the “full weight” of support of the SCLC, and exhorted them to keep on fighting until the war on segregation was won.
From "The Best of Enemies" by Osha Gray Davidson
When Rae Burrell enters, the game announcer is rehearsing, exhorting the not-yet-arrived crowd to cheer for their team.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 13, 2026
The show ends by exhorting visitors to help continue the Declaration’s journey.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2025
And now, here she was - seemingly a middle-aged woman - exhorting Tamilians across the world to take forward the political struggle for their freedom.
From BBC ● May 15, 2024
Bird was greeted by rapturous cheers, firing up the crowd with an exuberant speech exhorting them to carry him to the governor’s office in November.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 20, 2024
I was glad to be out of the dark and away from that exhorting voice.
From "Invisible Man" by Ralph Ellison
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.
