Exhortation
/ˌɛks.hɔːrˈteɪ.ʃən/noun
An earnest urging or strong encouragement to do something.
Did you know?Exhortation comes from Latin *exhortari*, literally “to urge strongly,” built from *ex-* (“out”) + *hortari* (“to encourage, incite”), and the same root gives us the modern word *hortatory* — language that was once meant to move people like a ritual push.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*gher-
“to desire, long for, take delight in”
Latin
Latin
hortārī
“to encourage, urge, incite”
Late Latin
Latin
exhortātiō
“an urging, encouragement, exhortation”
Old French
Old French
exhortacion
“earnest urging or admonition”
Middle English
English
exhortacioun
“an urging or appeal”
Modern English
English
exhortation
“an earnest urging or strong encouragement”