rebuke
Americanverb (used with object)
-
rebukes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
rebuked,
past participle, past
-
rebuking
present participle
noun
-
rebukes
plural
verb
noun
Synonym Usage
See reproach.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
rebukesimple
-
rebukessimple
-
have rebukedperfect
-
has rebukedperfect
-
am rebukingprogressive
-
are rebukingprogressive
-
is rebukingprogressive
-
have been rebukingperfect progressive
-
has been rebukingperfect progressive
Past
-
rebukedsimple
-
had rebukedperfect
-
was rebukingprogressive
-
were rebukingprogressive
-
had been rebukingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of rebuke
First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English rebuken (verb), from Anglo-French rebuker ( Old French rebuchier ) “to beat back,” equivalent to re- re- + bucher “to beat, strike,” from Germanic
Explanation
If you receive a rebuke, it means that you have been reprimanded, or scolded. You're sure to get a rebuke if you forget to do your math homework four days in a row. The word rebuke can be a verb, meaning to sternly reprimand or scold, but it can also be a noun, because a rebuke is the result of being scolded. The root comes from the Old French rebuchier and means "to hack down," or "beat back." A rebuke, then, is meant to be critical and to chide — in today's terms, a rebuke is verbal smack-down!
Vocabulary lists containing rebuke
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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 menu, embracing its red-hued simplicity, almost reads as a rebuke to its competitors.
From Slate ● Aug. 24, 2026
That visit sparked fury in China and South Korea and even a rare rebuke from close ally the United States.
From Barron's ● Aug. 15, 2026
The decision to make his eligible for Monday’s game also drew rebuke from UEFA, the governing body for soccer in Europe and the largest, most powerful of FIFA’s six confederations.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 6, 2026
Rama himself has published what appears to be a public rebuke to former Greek Prime Minister Aleksis Tsipras.
From BBC ● Jun. 4, 2026
It was not a rebuke or a mark of ill-favor.
From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson
But such sharp rebukes may well suggest the former first minister's standing in the party has shrunk.
From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026
The moves were unpopular in the clubhouse, drawing angry rebukes from Red Sox players.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 21, 2026
Public rebukes followed Hegseth’s decision last month to effectively fire Gen. Chris Donahue, a respected four-star commander who came up the ranks through the special forces.
From Salon ● Jul. 7, 2026
No similar rebukes against Daines are expected in the Senate.
From Slate ● Mar. 7, 2026
I’m so used to it that I’ve become completely indifferent to Mother’s rebukes and Margot’s moodiness.
From "The Diary of a Young Girl" by Anne Frank
After he launched FFE last week, he was rebuked by every corner of the game.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026
They will also be the first under new Federal Reserve boss Kevin Warsh after he last month replaced Jerome Powell, who was constantly rebuked by Trump for not cutting interest rates enough.
From Barron's ● Jun. 2, 2026
Heath and his siblings were rebuked by their neighbors, Heath said, to the point that his brother, Phil, told the township attorney he was thinking about resigning as supervisor.
From Salon ● Apr. 27, 2026
The governor’s office sharply rebuked the court’s action.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 3, 2026
And you hear how Gorgias, when a swallow shat on his head, rebuked it: “Shame on you, Philomela!”
From "Words Like Loaded Pistols" by Sam Leith
The cynical maneuver so disgusted Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, a maverick Democrat from rural Washington state, that she defied party leaders and introduced a resolution rebuking Garcia.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 18, 2026
Starmer, who for a year has assiduously courted the president and held off publicly rebuking him, has now changed course.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 23, 2026
At its peak, there were over 6,000 Shakers, joining Ann in rebuking the gruesome, incalculable evils of war and preaching moral generosity.
From Salon ● Dec. 27, 2025
His stand-up routine included jokes about dating, autism and Tourette’s, and he got extra laughs after rebuking head judge Simon Cowell.
From BBC ● May 25, 2024
I did not sleep that night, but lay awake rebuking myself for running away in fear.
From "Ophelia" by Lisa Klein
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.
