oration en · NOUN
Pronunciation
- (Southern-England) audio
- /ɒˈɹeɪʃən/ (Received-Pronunciation)
- /ɔɹˈeɪʃən/ (General-American)
Etymology
Borrowed from Latin ōrātiō, ōrātiōnem, from ōrō (“to orate”) + -tiō (“action (nominalizer)”). Cognate with and doublet of orison.
Meanings
-
A formal, often ceremonial speech.
a funeral oration; an impassioned oration; to make / deliver / pronounce an oration
[…] there is ſuch confuſion in my powers, / As after ſome Oration fairely ſpoke / By a beloued Prince, there doth appeare / Among the buzzing pleaſed multitude.
c. 1596–1598 (date written), W[illiam] Shakespeare, The Excellent History of the Merchant of Venice. […] (First Quarto), [London]: […] J[ames] Roberts [for Thomas Heyes], published 1600, →OCLC, [Act III, scene ii]:And vpon a ſet day Herod arayed in royall apparell, ſate vpon his throne, and made an Oration vnto them.
1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Acts 12:21, column 1:[…] when the provinces again displayed their old flags (proscribed in Guzman Bento’s time) there was another of those great orations, when Don José greeted these old emblems of the war of Independence, brought out again in the name of new Ideals.
1904 January 29 – October 7, Joseph Conrad, chapter I, in Nostromo: A Tale of the Seaboard, London; New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers […], published 1904, →OCLC, part second (The Isabels), page 112:1752, Samuel Johnson, The Rambler, No. 207, 10 March, 1752, in Volume 6, London: J. Payne and J. Bouquet, 1752, p. 279, The masters of rhetorick direct, that the most forcible arguments be produced in the latter part of an oration, lest they should be effaced or perplexed by supervenient images.
-
(humorous) A lengthy speech or argument in a private setting.
Sally bustled off to set on the kettle for tea, and felt half ashamed, in the quiet of the kitchen, to think of the oration she had made in the parlour.
1854, Elizabeth Gaskell, chapter 16, in Ruth:The supper things cleared away, Gerald resumed his oration, but with little satisfaction to himself and none at all to his audience.
1936 June 30, Margaret Mitchell, chapter IV, in Gone with the Wind, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company, →OCLC, page 63:My Landlord was likewiſe beginning his Oration to Jones, but was preſently interrupted by that generous Youth, who ſhook him heartily by the Hand; and aſſured him of entire Forgiveneſs […]
1749, Henry Fielding, “In which the Arrival of a Man of War puts a final End to Hostilities, and causes the Conclusion of a firm and lasting Peace between all Parties”, in The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling, volume III, London: A[ndrew] Millar, […], →OCLC, book IX, page 338:
- A specific form of short, solemn prayer said by the president of the liturgical celebration on behalf of the people.
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| orations | Number=Plur | lexicographic |
Deriveds
Relateds
orate · peroration · orison · oratrix · oratory · orator
Synonyms
discourse (formal speech) · spiel (lengthy speech in a private setting) · lecture (lengthy speech in a private setting) · harangue (formal speech) · lecture (formal speech) · address (formal speech) · sermon (formal speech) · eulogy (formal speech) · homily (formal speech)
Translations (16)
cy araith (formal speech) · pl oracja (short, solemn prayer) · bg тържествена реч (formal speech) · ar خُطْبَة (formal speech) · ms pengucapan (formal speech) · fr oraison (lengthy speech in a private setting) · de Rede (formal speech) · pl oracja (formal speech) · fr oraison (formal speech) · pt oração (short, solemn prayer) · la ōrātiō (formal speech) · fi juhlapuhe (formal speech) · nl redevoering (formal speech) · id orasi (formal speech) · de Ansprache (formal speech) · ko 연설 (formal speech)