rhetorical

adjective

rhe·​tor·​i·​cal ri-ˈtȯr-i-kəl How to pronounce rhetorical (audio)
-ˈtär-
variants or less commonly rhetoric
ri-ˈtȯr-ik How to pronounce rhetorical (audio)
-ˈtär-
1
a
: of, relating to, or concerned with rhetoric
b
: employed for rhetorical effect
especially : asked merely for effect with no answer expected
a rhetorical question
2
a
: given to rhetoric : grandiloquent
b
: verbal
rhetorically adverb

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Rhetorical Language vs. Rhetorical Questions

Rhetorical has several meanings which are close enough in meaning that they may easily cause confusion. It can refer to the subject of rhetoric ("the art of speaking or writing effectively") in a broad sense, and may also refer to that same subject in a somewhat deprecatory sense ("given to insincere or grandiloquent language"). But perhaps the most common use of rhetorical today is found in conjunction with question. A rhetorical question is not a question about the art of speaking effectively; it is a question that is asked for effect, rather than from a desire to know the answer. “Would it kill you to stop chewing your food with your mouth open?” is a rhetorical question.

Examples of rhetorical in a Sentence

McKinney made her name in Georgia politics as a rhetorical bomb-thrower. Colleagues in the statehouse dubbed her "Hanoi Cynthia" after a 1991 speech denouncing the Persian Gulf War. Bill Turque, Newsweek, 29 Nov. 1993
Clinton's acceptance speech evidenced some of the classical rhetorical devices such as paronomasia, or punning, and anaphora, or repetition of key words or phrases. Leo McManus, English Today, October 1993
"Take that river down there, for instance. It conforms pretty much to the map, doesn't it?" I assumed he was asking a rhetorical question and kept my mouth shut. Marshall Harrison, A Lonely Kind of War, 1989
… he [Thomas Wolfe] crammed his novels with lavish apostrophes to Life and Death and Loneliness and Sorrow, covering page after page with grandiose rhetorical flourishes …  , pseudo-Homeric epithets …  , wooden dialogue and pious homilies about "the brevity of our days." James Atlas, New York Times Book Review, 2 Dec. 1979
My question was rhetorical. I wasn't really expecting an answer. you can skip over the rhetorical passages and still get the gist of the essay
Recent Examples on the Web More important than any algorithmic scaling law, then, might be a rhetorical scaling law: bold prediction leading to lavish investment that requires a still-more-outlandish prediction, and so on. Matteo Wong, The Atlantic, 17 Oct. 2024 The rhetorical bundle of arguments that the system is corrupt can be captured by both the left and the right. Isaac Chotiner, The New Yorker, 17 Oct. 2024 By Ali Breland One of Donald Trump’s signature rhetorical moves—and there are many—is wrapping his most heinous and controversial public statements in the faintest patina of ambiguity. Ali Breland, The Atlantic, 8 Oct. 2024 And these two individuals, their very bright, have a chance to play above the board and not go into the gutter or with sniper fire one time after the other, in a rhetorical way. Abc News, ABC News, 2 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for rhetorical 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'rhetorical.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

see rhetoric

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of rhetorical was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near rhetorical

Cite this Entry

“Rhetorical.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rhetorical. Accessed 5 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

rhetorical

adjective
rhe·​tor·​i·​cal ri-ˈtȯr-i-kəl How to pronounce rhetorical (audio)
-ˈtär-
1
: of, relating to, or dealing with rhetoric
rhetorical studies
2
: used only for a colorful effect and not expected to be answered
a rhetorical question
rhetorically adverb

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