Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

vituperate

/vəˈt(j)upəˌɹeɪt/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 0.00 in modern English

Syllables
vi-tu-per-ate
IPA
/vəˈt(j)upəˌɹeɪt/
15
Scrabble Score
10
Letters
4
Syllables
8
Unique Chars

Meaning

verb

To criticize (someone or something) in an abusive or harsh manner.

Formal; Transitive verb

verb

To attack (someone or something) with abusive language; to revile, to vilify.

Formal; Transitive verb

verb

To use abusive or harsh words.

Formal; Intransitive verb

adj

Of, characterized by, or relating to abusive or harsh criticism.

Formal

adj

Which has been abusively or harshly criticized; also, deserving harsh criticism.

Formal

Example Sentences

Etymology

PIE word *dwóh₁ Learned borrowing from Latin vituperātus (“censured; disparaged”), perfect passive participle of vituperō (“to blame, scold, tell off; to censure; to disparage, find fault with”) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)), from vitium (“blemish, defect, flaw, imperfection; crime, misdeed, wrongdoing; fault, error, sin; vice; disease (of plants)”) (possibly from Proto-Indo-European *(d)wi-tyo- (“apart; wrong”), from *dwóh₁ (“two”)) + parō (“to acquire, get, obtain, procure; to arrange, order; to contrive, design; to furnish, provide; to produce; to decide, resolve”) (from Proto-Indo-European *per- (“to get, procure; to produce; to bring forward; to bring forth, carry forth; to go through”)).

Origin

Word Breakdown

Regional Pronunciation

  • American English: /vəˈt(j)upəˌɹeɪt/
  • British English: /vɪˈtjuːpəɹeɪt/

Usage

Inflected Forms

Derived Forms

Frequently Paired Words

Synonyms

Questions

How do you pronounce vituperate?
The recorded pronunciation is /vəˈt(j)upəˌɹeɪt/.
What does vituperate mean?
To criticize (someone or something) in an abusive or harsh manner.
Where does vituperate come from?
It is traced to Proto-Indo-European.

How to pronounce vituperate

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “vituperate”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/vəˈt(j)upəˌɹeɪt/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
  3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “vituperate”.
  4. Repeat and practice — Say “vituperate” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.