harangue

[ huh-rang ]

See synonyms for: harangue harangues haranguing on Thesaurus.com

noun

a scolding or a long or intense verbal attack; diatribe.
a long, passionate, and vehement speech, especially one delivered before a public gathering.

any long, pompous speech or writing of a tediously hortatory or didactic nature; sermonizing lecture or discourse.

verb (used with object),ha·rangued, ha·rangu·ing.

to address in a harangue.

verb (used without object),ha·rangued, ha·rangu·ing.

to deliver a harangue.

Origin of harangue

First recorded in 1530–40; (noun) from Middle French harangue. from Italian ar(r)inga “speech, oration,” noun derivative of ar(r)ingare “to speak in public,” verbal derivative of aringo “public square,” from unattested Gothic hriggs “ring” (verb) from Middle French haranguer, from Italian ar(r)ingare;see ring¹

synonym study For harangue

2 See speech

Other words from harangue

un·ha·rangued, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use harangue in a sentence

We busted into houses with shotguns, cleaned up decapitated bodies, harangued local authorities.
Mosul's Civilization and Its Discontents | Michael Carson | June 14, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
So he had demos made and touted them round the record companies; he pleaded and spieled and harangued.
What It Was Like to Watch the Beatles Become the Beatles—Nik Cohn Remembers | Nik Cohn | February 9, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
The day before he died, Ready harangued on Facebook against “traitors in office” and an “apathetic public.”
Jason Todd Ready, an Arizona White Supremacist, Kills Four, Then Himself | Terry Greene Sterling | May 3, 2012 | THE DAILY BEAST
Arrived, he harangued them on the cleverness of the white fellows, and invited them to play at Europeans.
It Is Never Too Late to Mend | Charles Reade
He stood alone, that marvelous man, holding the last bottle of Malvasia sweetly cradled in an arm, and he harangued the multitude.
Where the Pavement Ends | John Russell

A man mounted the Tindal statue and harangued the crowd, urging the people to rise and compel the Government to stop the war.
The Invasion | William Le Queux
Sir Francis Levison harangued the mob from the Raven, but in a more ignoble manner.
East Lynne | Mrs. Henry Wood
In Rowlandson's print a Methodistical congregation is being harangued by the pastor on the respective qualities of the candidates.
Rowlandson the Caricaturist. First Volume | Joseph Grego

British Dictionary definitions for harangue

harangue

/ (həˈræŋ) /

verb

to address (a person or crowd) in an angry, vehement, or forcefully persuasive way

noun

a loud, forceful, or angry speech

Origin of harangue

C15: from Old French, from Old Italian aringa public speech, probably of Germanic origin; related to Medieval Latin harenga; see harry, ring 1

Derived forms of harangue

haranguer, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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