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rhetorical

[ri-tawr-i-kuhl, -tor-] Origin

rhe·tor·i·cal

[ri-tawr-i-kuhl, -tor-]
adjective
1.
used for, belonging to, or concerned with mere style or effect.
2.
marked by or tending to use bombast.
3.
of, concerned with, or having the nature of rhetoric.

Origin:
1470–80; < Latin rhētoric(us) (< Greek rhētorikós) + -al1

rhe·tor·i·cal·ly, adverb
rhe·tor·i·cal·ness, noun
non·rhe·tor·i·cal, adjective
non·rhe·tor·i·cal·ly, adverb
un·rhe·tor·i·cal, adjective
EXPAND
un·rhe·tor·i·cal·ly, adverb
COLLAPSE


1. verbal, stylistic, oratorical.

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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Rhetorical is an SAT word you need to know.
So is abstruse. Does it mean:
extremely bad reputation, public reproach, or strong condemnation as the result of a shameful, criminal, or outrageous act
difficult to comprehend
Collins
World English Dictionary
rhetorical (rɪˈtɒrɪkəl)
 
adj
1.  concerned with effect or style rather than content or meaning; bombastic
2.  of or relating to rhetoric or oratory
 
rhe'torically
 
adv

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

rhetorical
late 15c., "eloquent," from L. rhetoricus (see rhetoric). Meaning "pertaining to rhetoric" is from 1520s. Rhetorical question is from 1843.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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