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fustigate

verb
fus·​ti·​gate | \ ˈfə-stə-ˌgāt How to pronounce fustigate (audio) \
fustigated; fustigating

Definition of fustigate

transitive verb

1 : cudgel
2 : to criticize severely
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Other Words from fustigate

fustigation \ ˌfə-​stə-​ˈgā-​shən How to pronounce fustigation (audio) \ noun

Did You Know?

Though it won't leave a bump on your head, severe criticism can be a blow to your self-esteem. It's no wonder that "fustigate," when it first appeared in the 17th century, originally meant "to cudgel or beat with a short heavy stick," a sense that reflects the word's derivation from the Latin noun fustis, which means "club" or "staff." The "criticize" sense is more common these days, but the violent use of "fustigate" was a hit with earlier writers like George Huddesford, who in 1801 told of an angry Jove who "cudgell'd all the constellations, ... / Swore he'd eject the man i' the moon ... / And fustigate him round his orbit."

First Known Use of fustigate

circa 1661, in the meaning defined at sense 1

History and Etymology for fustigate

Late Latin fustigatus, past participle of fustigare, from Latin fustis + -igare (as in fumigare to fumigate)

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Rhyming Dictionary: Words that rhyme with fustigate

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