Definition of DIATRIBE

diatribe

Plural: diatribes

Noun

  • A bitter and abusive verbal attack or criticism.
  • thunderous verbal attack
  • An abusive, bitter verbal or written attack, criticism or denunciation.
  • A prolonged discourse; a long-winded speech.

Examples

  • After losing, he launched into a DIATRIBE about the unfair distribution of vowels.
  • The senator was prone to diatribes which could go on for more than an hour.

Origin / Etymology

First attested 1581, borrowed from French diatribe, from Latin diatriba (“learned discussion or discourse”), from Ancient Greek διατριβή (diatribḗ, “way of spending time, lecture”), from διά (diá, “through”) + τρίβω (tríbō, “I waste, wear out”)

Scrabble Score: 11

diatribe: valid Scrabble (US) TWL Word
diatribe: valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
diatribe: valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary

Words With Friends Score: 12

diatribe: valid Words With Friends Word