Rant
/rænt/noun
To speak or shout at length in a wild, excited, or impassioned way.
Did you know?The word is historically tied to the idea of swearing and shouting with excess, and its earliest English uses already carried the sense of loud, uncontrolled speech.
Etymological Timeline
Early 17th Century
English
rant
“To speak in a loud, extravagant, boastful way; to swagger in speech.”
17th Century
English
rant
“A boisterous, extravagant speech or outburst.”
Late Middle English
Dutch
ranten
“To talk wildly, rave, or swagger in speech.”
Middle Dutch
Dutch
ranten
“To rave, talk extravagantly, or behave in a boisterous manner.”
Germanic
PGmc
*rant-
“A likely expressive base associated with noisy, boisterous speech or behavior.”
Explore more surprising origins