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tirade

[ tahy-reyd, tahy-reyd ]
/ ˈtaɪ reɪd, taɪˈreɪd /
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noun

a prolonged outburst of bitter, outspoken denunciation: a tirade against smoking.
a long, vehement speech: a tirade in the Senate.
a passage dealing with a single theme or idea, as in poetry: the stately tirades of Corneille.

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RELATED WORDS

ranting, invective, denunciation, diatribe, harangue, sermon, screed, revilement, philippic, jeremiad, condemnation, censure, malediction, fulmination, anger, lecture, tongue-lashing, vituperation, dispute, berating

Nearby words

  1. tiptronic,
  2. tipu,
  3. tipu sahib,
  4. tipuna,
  5. tir,
  6. tirage,
  7. tiramisu,
  8. tiran,
  9. tirana,
  10. tiranë

Origin of tirade

1795–1805; < French: literally, a stretch, (continuous) pulling < Italian tirata, noun use of feminine of tirato, past participle of tirare to draw, pull, fire (a shot), of obscure origin
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for tirade

British Dictionary definitions for tirade

tirade

/ (taɪˈreɪd) /

noun

a long angry speech or denunciation
prosody rare a speech or passage dealing with a single theme

Word Origin for tirade

C19: from French, literally: a pulling, from Italian tirata, from tirare to pull, of uncertain origin
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
Word Origin and History for tirade

tirade

n.

1801, "a 'volley of words,' " from French tirade "speech, volley, shot, continuation, drawing out" (16c.), from tirer "draw out, endure, suffer," or the French word is perhaps from cognate Italian tirata "a volley," from past participle of tirare "to draw." The whole Romanic word group is of uncertain origin; some think it is a shortening of the source of Old French martirer "endure martyrdom" (see martyr).

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper