Words / C2

OBJ-uh-gayt/ˈɒbdʒəɡeɪt/

To objurgate is to rebuke someone harshly (formal / literary): objurgate a colleague, objurgated for slackness. Scold is everyday; hector (already in the dictionary) is to browbeat, not merely to reprove. A numbered methods objection is not a scolding. Do not objurgate a junior for asking where the date went.

Meaning

To rebuke someone harshly (formal / literary).

Examples

• “Do not objurgate a junior for asking where the date went.”
• “Scold is everyday. Rebuke and reprimand are the close cousins. Hector is bullying lecture (already in C2). Invective is the abusive noun (already in C2). A dated risk can fairly be named. Volume in the corridor is not a minute. Write the cell; spare the theatre.”

Good to know

Rebuke harshly (formal). Everyday: scold. Close: reprimand. Contrast: hector (browbeat — already in C2). Asking for the date is not insolence.

Near in meaning

scold

New