Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- transitive verb To counsel (another) against something to be avoided or warn (that something is dangerous).
- transitive verb To urge or exhort (someone to do something).
- transitive verb To remind (someone) of something forgotten or disregarded, as an obligation or a responsibility.
- transitive verb To reprove gently but earnestly.
from The Century Dictionary.
- To notify of or reprove for a fault; reprove with mildness.
- To counsel against something; caution or advise; exhort; warn.
- To instruct or direct; guide.
- To inform; acquaint with; notify; remind; recall or incite to duty.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- transitive verb To warn or notify of a fault; to reprove gently or kindly, but seriously; to exhort.
- transitive verb To counsel against wrong practices; to cation or advise; to warn against danger or an offense; -- followed by
of ,against , or a subordinate clause. - transitive verb To instruct or direct; to inform; to notify.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- verb To
warn ornotify of a fault; toreprove gently or kindly, but seriously; toexhort . - verb To
counsel against wrong practices; to caution or advise; to warn against danger or an offense; — followed by of, against, or a subordinate clause. - verb To
instruct or direct; to inform; to notify.
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- verb take to task
- verb admonish or counsel in terms of someone's behavior
- verb warn strongly; put on guard
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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Merriam-Webster editor at large Peter Sokolowski says news stories about a member of Congress who shouted "You lie!" at the President sent the word admonish to the top of the list of frequently looked-up words in the online dictionary.
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Staring at the nude female sunbather fifteen floors below, her tattooed backside exposed so that everyone in the surrounding high-rises could admire or cajole or admonish from the windows next to their cubicles, office workers on every floor calling friends or documenting the view with cell-phone cameras, I realized that no matter how holy or removed from the everyday we might be, we are all rubberneckers to the mundane absurdities that materialize seemingly out of nowhere.
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Staring at the nude female sunbather fifteen floors below, her tattooed backside exposed so that everyone in the surrounding high-rises could admire or cajole or admonish from the windows next to their cubicles, office workers on every floor calling friends or documenting the view with cell-phone cameras, I realized that no matter how holy or removed from the everyday we might be, we are all rubberneckers to the mundane absurdities that materialize seemingly out of nowhere.
July 2004 2004
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In another "consensually-made recording," Andrew Russo was said to "admonish" Anthony Russo for taking part in a sitdown with the Gambino family over the stabbing of a Colombo associate.
Jerry Capeci: Nephew of Top Mobster Aids in Colombo Family Takedown Jerry Capeci 2011
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[Footnote 2: So called by Ericsson because it would "admonish" the South, and also suggest to England "doubts as to the propriety of completing four steel-clad ships at three and one-half millions apiece."]
A History of Sea Power William Oliver Stevens 1916
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No I don't "admonish" those on the right for using the word communist, and I do not have to show that I've done it in the past to discuss AM760's assertion.
Denver Post: News: Breaking: Local blh1616 2010
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Depending on which dictionary you trust, either "admonish" (Merriam-Webster) or "unfriend" (New Oxford American) was anointed 2009's word of the year.
Dallas / Fort Worth news, weather, sports, traffic and video from cbs11tv.com 2010
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Depending on which dictionary you trust, either "admonish" (Merriam-Webster) or "unfriend" (New Oxford American) was anointed 2009's word of the year.
CBS 4 - South Florida's Source for Breaking News, Weather, and Sports 2010
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Mike Kiley wrote: I am giving my expert opinion as a doctorally trained political scientist; I do not need to give you a link. bagzzaf wrote: No I don't "admonish" those on the right for using the word communist, and I do not have to show that I've done it in the past to discuss AM760's assertion.
Denver Post: News: Breaking: Local blh1616 2010
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John Maynard bagzzaf wrote: No I don't "admonish" those on the right for using the word communist, and I do not have to show that I've done it in the past to discuss AM760's assertion.
Denver Post: News: Breaking: Local blh1616 2010
chained_bear commented on the word admonish
Used here.
July 30, 2009