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berate

verb
be·​rate | \ bi-ˈrāt How to pronounce berate (audio) , bē-\
berated; berating; berates

Definition of berate

transitive verb

: to scold or condemn vehemently and at length being berated by her parents when she came home late
Synonyms Choose the Right Synonym Berate and Rate More Example Sentences Learn More about berate

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Choose the Right Synonym for berate

scold, upbraid, berate, rail, revile, vituperate mean to reproach angrily and abusively. scold implies rebuking in irritation or ill temper justly or unjustly. angrily scolding the children upbraid implies censuring on definite and usually justifiable grounds. upbraided her assistants for poor research berate suggests prolonged and often abusive scolding. berated continually by an overbearing boss rail (at or against) stresses an unrestrained berating. railed loudly at their insolence revile implies a scurrilous, abusive attack prompted by anger or hatred. an alleged killer reviled in the press vituperate suggests a violent reviling. was vituperated for betraying his friends

Berate and Rate

Berate and rate can both mean "to scold angrily or violently." This sense of rate was first recorded in the 14th century, roughly two centuries before the now more familiar (and etymologically unrelated) rate meaning "to estimate the value of." We know that berate was probably formed by combining be and the older rate, but the origins of this particular rate itself are somewhat more obscure. We can trace the word back to the Middle English form raten, but beyond that things get a little murky. It's possible that rate, and by extension berate, derives from the same ancient word that led to the Swedish rata (meaning "to find blame, despise") and earlier the Old Norse hrata ("to fall, stagger"), but this is uncertain.

Examples of berate in a Sentence

there's no need to berate someone for making a mistake during the first day on the job

Recent Examples on the Web

 The New York Times reported in April that Mr. Miller berated the former acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Ronald D. Vitiello, for not finishing the rule more quickly. — Michael D. Shear, New York Times, "Migrant Families Would Face Indefinite Detention Under New Trump Rule," 21 Aug. 2019 Viral videos show Americans berating restaurant employees, and even threatening to call immigration enforcement authorities, for speaking in Spanish. — Samantha Schmidt, Washington Post, "‘Why don’t you speak Spanish?’: For JuliĂĄn Castro and millions of Latinos, the answer is not so simple," 15 July 2019 Trump repeatedly publicly berated Sessions for recusing himself from the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. — al.com, "Sessions hasn’t ruled out Senate run, Shelby says," 19 June 2019 Other emails show Schedler berating the woman and getting angry with her. — Julia O'donoghue, NOLA.com, "Tom Schedler sent sexually suggestive emails to employee for years: report," 26 Apr. 2018 Not long after commenting about temper tantrums, LaHood lost his temper, berating a woman at the VFW Post before ranting about graphic details of violent crimes. — Brian Chasnoff, San Antonio Express-News, "LaHood’s infamous temper on display at town halls," 17 Jan. 2018 After social media berated the condo owner and left plenty Google reviews, Booking.com and even AirBnB removed the property listing. — Kynala Phillips, Essence, "Miami Vacation Condo Owner Harassed Black Guest," 26 June 2019 Others berated policemen for turning against their fellow citizens. — The Economist, "“They chose to come and fight for the freedom of Hong Kong”," 12 June 2019 Dolan, who is known to berate underlings in meetings, has inserted himself into basketball decisions and spent lavishly to try to create a competitive team. — David Waldstein, New York Times, "Why Stars Won’t Come to the Knicks," 5 July 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'berate.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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First Known Use of berate

1548, in the meaning defined above

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More Definitions for berate

berate

verb
How to pronounce berate (audio)

English Language Learners Definition of berate

formal : to yell at (someone) : to criticize (someone) in a loud and angry way

See the full definition for berate in the English Language Learners Dictionary

berate

verb
be·​rate | \ bi-ˈrāt How to pronounce berate (audio) \
berated; berating

Kids Definition of berate

: to scold in a loud and angry way

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More from Merriam-Webster on berate

Rhyming Dictionary: Words that rhyme with berate

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for berate

Spanish Central: Translation of berate

Nglish: Translation of berate for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of berate for Arabic Speakers

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