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Added 9 October 2026

rebuke

/ɹiˈbjuːk/ noun

In Latin: obiurgō Wiktionary

noun Definition from WordNet 3.1, Princeton University. Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about rebuke at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

An act or expression of criticism and censure.
he had to take the rebuke with a smile on his face

verb

Censure severely or angrily.
The mother scolded the child for entering a stranger's car

Origin

From Middle English rebuken, from Anglo-Norman rebuker (“to beat back, repel”), from re- + Old French *buker, buchier, buschier (“to strike, hack down, chop”), from busche (“wood”), from Vulgar Latin *busca (“wood, grove”), from Frankish *busk (“grove”), from Proto-Germanic *buskaz (“bush”); equivalent to re- + bush.

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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