Perorates

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To deliver an extended speech characterized by eloquent expression and formal rhetoric while aiming to persuade or inform the audience
2. To engage in lengthy oratory marked by grand language and a persuasive intent, often addressing a significant issue
3. Speaks at length with grand or formal language, typically to persuade or emphasize a point

Etymology: "Perorates" is the third-person singular form of "perorate," so its history belongs to the verb itself. The verb entered English in 1603 by borrowing from Latin "perōrātus," the past participle of "perōrō," and the -ate ending marks it as a verb. Latin "perōrō" was built from "per," meaning "through" or "to the end," and "ōrō," meaning "to speak" or "plead," so the sense of carrying a speech through to its conclusion is built into the word. The Latin root reaches back to "ōrō," which is also the source of English "orator" and "oration." In Latin, "perōrāre" had a specific technical meaning: the closing section of a speech, where the speaker summed up and made a final emotional appeal to the audience. English kept that association, so to perorate originally meant to deliver that concluding part of an oration, and only later broadened to mean speaking at length in a grand or formal manner.

Synonyms: lectures, speaks, declares, expounds, rants

Antonyms: whispers, mumbles, quiets, silences, mutters