preach

American  

[preech] / pritʃ /

verb (used with object)

• preaches,
  present (3rd person singular)
• preached,
  past participle,  past
• preaching
  present participle

1. to proclaim or make known by sermon (the gospel, good tidings, etc.).

2. to deliver (a sermon).

3. to advocate or inculcate (religious or moral truth, right conduct, etc.) in speech or writing.

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verb (used without object)

• preaches,
  present (3rd person singular)
• preached,
  past participle,  past
• preaching
  present participle

1. to deliver a sermon.

2. to give earnest advice, as on religious or moral subjects or the like.

   Synonyms:

   expound, pronounce, profess, advocate

3. to give earnest advice in an obtrusive or tedious way.

idioms

1. preach to the choir. see preach to the choir.

preach British  

/ priːtʃ /

verb

1. to make known (religious truth) or give religious or moral instruction or exhortation in (sermons)

2. to advocate (a virtue, action, etc), esp in a moralizing way

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preach More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing preach

• practice what you preach

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• outpreach
  verb (used with object)
• preachable
  adjective
• unpreached
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• preaching
  present
• preached
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• preach
  simple
• preaches
  simple
• have preached
  perfect
• has preached
  perfect
• am preaching
  progressive
• are preaching
  progressive
• is preaching
  progressive
• have been preaching
  perfect progressive
• has been preaching
  perfect progressive

Past

• preached
  simple
• had preached
  perfect
• was preaching
  progressive
• were preaching
  progressive
• had been preaching
  perfect progressive

Future

• will preach
  simple
• will have preached
  perfect
• will be preaching
  progressive
• will have been preaching
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of preach

1175–1225; Middle English prechen < Old French pre ( ë ) chier < Late Latin praedicāre to preach ( Latin: to assert publicly, proclaim). See predicate

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Explanation

To preach is to deliver a sermon or an otherwise powerful message. You may go to church to hear the minister preach, and you may preach tolerance to your friends. Have you ever heard anyone say, "That's preaching to the choir"? That means you're wasting your words on somebody who already believes what you believe. If you're giving an impassioned speech about recycling to an audience dressed in reclaimed clothing and sandals made of old tires, you're likely to be preaching to the choir. The word preach comes from the Latin prae, "before," and dicare, "declare." When you preach, you're not just talking — you're declaring something with conviction.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

preach preaches preached preaching

Wildlife presenter Steve Backshall has told how he sets out to make nature "adventurous" and "cool" for children rather than preach to them.

From BBC ● Oct. 2, 2026

Pastors and faith leaders can preach on any moral or social issue, including justice, poverty, immigration, war.

From Salon ● Jul. 18, 2026

And yes, I practice what I preach and own an energy-stock fund in my own retirement accounts, though none of those mentioned.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 8, 2026

Two women dressed in green and pink fur cradle each other’s heads, reimagining medieval depictions of cephalophores — Christian martyrs who carry their severed heads while continuing to preach or pray.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 19, 2026

Olga sits back, her face attentive, as if she were listening to someone preach something she believes.

From "In the Time of the Butterflies" by Julia Alvarez

Owens herself manages to do a bang-up job of distracting people from the way she doesn’t practice what she preaches.

From Salon ● Sep. 8, 2026

He preaches selfishness instead of selflessness, avarice instead of charity and going after the least of us instead of raising them up.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026

Jin smiles broadly as he preaches on the joy of the Christian faith, only later to launch into a full-throated roar against perceived injustices.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 19, 2026

On Tuesday night, Lahmeyer, a 34-year-old who preaches in suits, announced that he was running to represent Tulsa’s solidly red district, which is currently held by Rep. Kevin Hern.

From Slate ● Mar. 26, 2026

Like most in his church, secretary Alma Delia Jimenez Renteria says she has learned more from what the priest practices than what he preaches.

From "Enrique's Journey" by Sonia Nazario

He said he had "consistently preached peace" throughout his life.

From Barron's ● Oct. 12, 2026

He renounced the prosperity gospel he once had preached, wrote a raw and wrenching biography about his missteps and vowed to work with the needy and most vulnerable when he was released.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 6, 2026

Everybody who preached patience in the new era gulped hard.

From BBC ● Sep. 27, 2026

Proof, if any were needed, that people prefer to be entertained rather than preached to.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026

“People want to be amused, not preached at, you know. Morals don’t sell nowadays.”

From "Little Women" by Louisa May Alcott

And I just had a whole chapter of preaching about the evils of all these quasi-sinful things one can do when trying to rhyme.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 2, 2026

But instead of preaching to the choir, he contends with society’s gray areas, never offering a solution — or even his own opinion — on the difficult topics at hand.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2026

Boateng, a 61-year-old pastor at Gospel Light church, has been preaching on commercial vehicles leaving Neoplan station since 2023.

From BBC ● Oct. 3, 2026

So often are these charges true that it can feel shocking when we encounter conceptual work that truly lands, that elevates its subject matter in a way that makes it deeply resonant without preaching.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 30, 2026

I’m preaching, but I also believe that if I live here much longer, I’ll turn into a dried-up old beanstalk.

From "The Diary of a Young Girl" by Anne Frank

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Related Words

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