rhetorically

[ ri-tawr-ik-lee, -tor- ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

adverb

in a way that uses language for style or effect:
These essays discuss how the term participatory has been deployed rhetorically by a range of institutions.
not expecting an answer, either because the answer is unknowable or because it is obvious:
I am not asking the question rhetorically or snidely.
in way that uses language in an exaggerated way:
The realities of the global marketplace are quite apparent; they don't need to be rhetorically beaten to death.
in a way that uses specialized literary language, such as figures of speech:
Some of the entries are concise, but most of them are verbally and rhetorically elaborate.
in a way that uses language particularly effectively:
Her testimony was rhetorically strong, but scientifically weak.
using words, especially in the absence of action:
He fails to demonstrate the validity of his claims, but merely asserts them rhetorically.

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