- Today's Word
Vituperate
vy-TOO-puh-rayt (or vy-TYOO-puh-rayt)
Definition
- (verb) To criticize or scold someone in a harsh, abusive manner.
Example
The coach began to vituperate the players after their lackluster performance in the championship game.
Fun Fact
“Vituperate” comes from the Latin vituperare, meaning “to blame” or “find fault with.” Though its use has declined in casual conversation, it remains a powerful word for describing sharp, biting criticism. It’s a testament to the richness of language for expressing disapproval in vivid terms.
(adjective) Noisy, unruly, and difficult to control; stubbornly resistant to restraint or discipline.
The obstreperous crowd refused to disperse despite three separate announcements, their noise and defiance rising with every attempt to restore order.
Obstreperous derives from the Latin obstreperus, meaning “clamorous” or “noisy,” built from ob- (“against”) and strepere (“to make a noise” or “to rattle”). The root strepere is also the ancestor of strep in streptococcus — both words carrying the sense of something loud and disruptive making itself impossible to ignore. It entered English in the early 17th century, immediately acquiring its dual sense of both physical noisiness and the kind of willful, uncontainable defiance that produces it.