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tub-thumper

American  
[tuhb-thuhm-per] / ˈtʌbˌθʌm pər /

noun

  1. a vociferous supporter or promoter, as of a cause.


tub-thumper British  

noun

  1. a noisy, violent, or ranting public speaker

"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

Other Word Forms

  • tub-thumping noun

Etymology

Origin of tub-thumper

First recorded in 1655–65

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.

Mr. Sanders might be able to create more of an opening if he attacked Mrs. Clinton’s dishonesty and ethical corner-cutting, but at heart he’s a socialist tub-thumper, not a liberal reformer.

From The Wall Street Journal

He was the self-styled Prince of Humbug who offered gullible patrons fake mermaids and 160-year-old women; at the same time, he was a temperance tub-thumper and, as an elected politician, an anti-slavery campaigner.

From The Guardian

To cap it all, the shadow foreign secretary and Unionist tub-thumper Douglas Alexander hijacked the row to berate the independence camp for lowering the debate's tone.

From The Guardian

The record ends with the title track, an anthemic tub-thumper to hammer home the Bieber mythos of following your dreams, never saying never and all those other aspirational bromides as earnest as they are vague.

From The Guardian

Who, here, forgetful of their Wiltshire birth cheered the Birmingham tub-thumper to the echo, and there, roared stern assent to the wildest statements of the Political Union?

From Project Gutenberg