as in urges
to try to persuade (someone) through earnest appeals to follow a course of action
the speaker exhorted the graduating students to go forth and try to make a difference in the world
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Recent Examples of exhorts
Carol, a reclusive and disgruntled bestselling romantasy author, exhorts her reticent audience of five immune English speakers to reclaim human agency against the milquetoast, obsequious blob and join her in a quest to reverse the happiness apocalypse.
—
Natalie Oganesyan, Deadline, 8 Nov. 2025
There is also a growing rhetoric that exhorts the virtues of blue-collar labor.
—Suzanne Blake, MSNBC Newsweek, 6 Oct. 2025
Natalie Oganesyan, Deadline, 8 Nov. 2025
There is also a growing rhetoric that exhorts the virtues of blue-collar labor.
—Suzanne Blake, MSNBC Newsweek, 6 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for exhorts
Verb
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Oz urges vaccinations amid measles outbreaks Health officials in Washington are warning people who attended the March For Life last month that they may have been exposed to measles, a highly contagious but easily preventable illness.—
Phaedra Trethan,
USA Today,
9 Feb. 2026
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The letter urges Nurrenbern to continue to oppose Hall’s nomination.—
Ben Wheeler,
Kansas City Star,
3 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The evening was more about the vibe; Gelman encourages all guests to dress up in fancy cocktail attire.—
Rachel Syme,
New Yorker,
13 Feb. 2026
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Perhaps that’s because, unlike other reality dating TV shows like The Bachelor and Love Island, the series encourages frank conversations about politics and social issues that mirror dating in the modern age.—
Savannah Walsh,
Vanity Fair,
12 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Exhorts.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/exhorts. Accessed 16 Feb. 2026.
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