Make Your Point: HARANGUE

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pronounce HARANGUE:

huh RANG

connect this word to others:

A harangue is a long, angry lecture: a screed; a sermon; a dia_____ ("a long, detailed, angry speech"); a tir___ ("a long, emotionally heated speech"); a phi______ ("an angry speech against something").

(To reveal any word with blanks, give it a click.)

definition:

The word "harangue" traces back through French to the Italian aringo, meaning "an arena, a circular field, or a public square."

In English, at first, "harangue" just meant "a public speech: an address given to an assembly of people." But over time, the meaning narrowed into "a loud, emotional speech, usually an angry one."

That's how we use it today, and although a harangue might still be delivered to a crowd, it doesn't have to be; it could be addressed to a small group or a single person.

We also use "harangue" as a verb: to harangue people is to give them a loud, emotional (often angry) speech or lecture.

grammatical bits:

Part of speech:

Often a noun, the countable kind: "She delivered another harangue;" "I'm tired of his harangues."

Also a verb, the transitive kind: "She harangued us;" "He harangued me via email again."

Other forms:

The plural noun is "harangues."

The other verb forms are "harangued" and "haranguing."

People who harangue others are "haranguers."

And if you need an adjective, "haranguing" will probably do, as in "Their haranguing style is exhausting" or "a haranguing email from your boss (Washington Post)."

how to use it:

"Harangue" is a formal, semi-common, extra-emphatic word, perfect when you want to sound annoyed or even exasperated by someone's furious long-winded speech.

You might talk about people delivering or issuing harangues, or about people enduring, being subjected to, or ignoring harangues.

Or, you might use the verb, and talk about people haranguing others, or haranguing them on or over some topic, or for some unacceptable behavior.

examples:

"The captains, hoping to curry favor with Cluny, harangued the hapless runners: 'Pick your feet up, you lily-livered scum! Come on, lift that ram properly, you idle devils.'"
— Brian Jacques, Redwall, 1986

"An orator of the Inner Party... was haranguing the crowd... His voice, made metallic by the amplifiers, boomed forth an endless catalogue of atrocities, massacres, deportations, lootings, rapings, torture of prisoners, bombing of civilians, lying propaganda, unjust aggressions, broken treaties. It was almost impossible to listen to him without being first convinced and then maddened."
— George Orwell, Nineteen Eighty-Four, 1949

has this page helped you understand "harangue"?

Awesome, I'm glad it helped!

Thanks for letting me know!
If you have any questions about this term, please message me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com.

study it:

Explain the meaning of "harangue" without saying "soapbox" or "exhort."

try it out:

As reported by Jon Katz, a teenage girl in Alabama who dressed in black goth clothing had "to endure frothy-mouthed harangues from Bible-thumping fanatics."

A similar haranguing used to take place on the campus where I went to college. A guy with a Bible and a megaphone would stand in a courtyard, shouting at students for wearing short skirts.

Have you, too, ever had the displeasure of being on the receiving end of a frothy-mouthed harangue? If so, talk about it. If not, talk about a time you were tempted to issue your own frothy-mouthed harangue at someone.

before you review, play:

Try to spend 20 seconds or more on the game below. Don’t skip straight to the review—first, let your working memory empty out.

Our game for this month is Make Your Point Before & After!

I'll give you a clue, and you give me a verbal mashup including at least one word or phrase we've studied before.

For example, if I give you "It's the kind of theatrical stage setting that encourages the actors to radically overact," then you give me "mise en scenery chewing," a mashup of "mise en scene" and "scenery chewing."

Try this one today: It's a secret midnight meeting for West African spellcasting.

To reveal the first two hints, highlight the hidden white text.

Hint 1: The number of words in this Before & After is... one.

Hint 2: The first word in this Before & After is... too big of a hint, but the first letters are REN.

Hint 3: Use this term.

To see the answer, scroll all the way down.

review this word:

1. Near opposites of HARANGUE include

A. IGNORE and NEGLECT.
B. PRAISE and CONGRATULATE.
C. WHITEWASH and ROMANTICIZE.

2. Sarah Blackwood noted that on the television show "So You Think You Can Dance," a contestant was "harangued by the judges for _____."

A. being [their] new favorite dancer in the competition
B. not expressing enough emotion when she dances
C. boarding the HOT TAMALE TRAIN

a final word:

I hope you're enjoying Make Your Point. It's made with love.

I'm Liesl Johnson, a reading and writing tutor on a mission to explore, illuminate, and celebrate words.

From my blog:
On vocabulary...
  36 ways to study words.
  Why we forget words, & how to remember them.
  How to use sophisticated words without being awkward.
On writing...
How to improve any sentence.
How to motivate our kids to write.
How to stop procrastinating and start writing.
How to bulk up your writing when you have to meet a word count.

From my heart: a profound thanks to the generous patrons, donors, and sponsors that make it possible for me to write these emails. If you'd like to be a patron or a donor, please click here. If you'd like to be a sponsor and include your ad in an issue, please contact me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com.

A disclaimer: When I write definitions, I use plain language and stick to the words' common, useful applications. If you're interested in authoritative and multiple definitions of words, I encourage you to check a dictionary. Also, because I'm American, I stick to American English when I share words' meanings, usage, and pronunciations; these elements sometimes vary across world Englishes.

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Make Your Point > Archived Issues > HARANGUE

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