preach

verb

ˈprēch 

preached; preaching; preaches

intransitive verb

1

: to deliver a sermon

2

: to urge acceptance or abandonment of an idea or course of action

specifically : to exhort in an officious or tiresome manner

transitive verb

1

: to set forth in a sermon

preach the gospel

2

: to advocate earnestly

preached revolution

3

: to deliver (something, such as a sermon) publicly

4

: to bring, put, or affect by preaching

preached the … church out of debt

—Amer. Guide Series: Va.

preachingly

ˈprē-chiŋ-lē 

adverb

Synonyms

• sermonize

Examples of preach in a Sentence

Have you ever heard that minister preach?

The minister preached to the congregation about the need for tolerance.

His followers listened to him preach the gospel.

The priest preached a regular sermon that Sunday.

Their mother has always preached the value of a good education.

Practice what you preach—don't smoke if you tell your children not to smoke.

The mayor continues to preach about the need for patience.

I don't like being preached at about how I should live my life.

Recent Examples on the Web

Johnson and others believed that dictionaries could record, and not merely dictate, the expressions of a people, in a version of what Savigny, the Grimms’ old professor at Marburg, had preached about the law. —Jennifer Wilson, The New Yorker, 4 Nov. 2024

Juventus take on Udinese test Up next for Juve is a trip east to take on Udinese, with Motta preaching a back-to-basics message. —Adam Digby, Forbes, 1 Nov. 2024

Combs was like many Black entrepreneurs who frame their material success as revolutionary while preaching about Black excellence. —Kyndall Cunningham, Vox, 31 Oct. 2024

But the devout young Lewis, who famously preached to the chickens on his family’s land, was hungry to become educated and to involve himself in the civil rights struggle. —Barbara Spindel, The Christian Science Monitor, 31 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English prechen, from Anglo-French precher, from Late Latin praedicare, from Latin, to proclaim, make known, from prae- pre- + dicare to proclaim — more at diction

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Phrases Containing preach

• preach to the choir
• preach to the converted

Kids Definition

preach

verb

ˈprēch 

1

a

: to deliver a sermon : utter publicly

b

: to set forth in a sermon

preach the gospel

2

: to urge publicly : advocate

preach brotherhood