Hortatory

Word of the Day

Hortatory is an adjective that means ‘tending to exhort.’

Coming from the Latin word hortari (hor TAR ay) which means ‘to exhort’ or ‘strongly encourage,’ hortatory is often used in a religious context to refer to someone delivering a sermon. When a message is conveyed in a way that is similar to a sermon, we can call it hortatory.

Ryan’s hortatory speech about the Federal Reserve made me want to put a twenty in a collection plate for the government. But I guess that’s what happens when you seem to be delivering a sermon.