rhetorical
adjective
Simple meaning
Related to using language effectively to please or persuade.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
rihtawrihkuhlSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ɹɪˈtɔɹɪkəl
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
adjective
Of or relating to rhetoric
“Accepted two or three verbal and rhetorical changes I suggested"- W.A.White.”
Part of or similar to rhetoric, the use of language as a means to persuade.
Not earnest, or presented only for the purpose of an argument.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- C1 · Advanced (estimated)
- Frequency
- Uncommon
- Typical Use
- Primarily written
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: Of or relating to rhetoric
Used this way, rhetorical is a common word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
“Accepted two or three verbal and rhetorical changes I suggested"- W.A.White.”
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Common
- Connotation
- No strong connotation
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Word family
Words built from the same root.
Using language effectively to please or persuade.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
A use of language that creates a literary effect (but often without regard for literal significance).
A statement that is formulated as a question but that is not supposed to be answered.
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Words can change meaning depending on context.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.