Dictionary
Thesaurus
Medical
Scrabble®
Spanish Central
Browse DictionaryBrowse Thesaurus
Get our free apps!iPhone•iPad•Android
Games
Word of the Day
Video
Blog: Words at Play
My Faves
Dictionary

lambaste

verb lam·baste \(ˌ)lam-ˈbāst, -ˈbast; ˈlam-ˌ\

: to criticize (someone or something) very harshly

Full Definition of LAMBASTE

transitive verb
1
:  to assault violently :  beat, whip
2
:  to attack verbally :  censure <critics lambasted his performance>
See lambaste defined for English-language learners
See lambaste defined for kids

Variants of LAMBASTE

lam·baste or lam·bast \(ˌ)lam-ˈbāst, -ˈbast; ˈlam-ˌ\
ADVERTISEMENT

Origin of LAMBASTE

probably from 1lam + baste
First Known Use: 1620

Related to LAMBASTE

Synonyms
baste, bawl out, berate, call down, castigate, chastise, chew out, dress down, flay, hammer, jaw, keelhaul, scold (or lambast), lecture, rag, rail (at or against), rant (at), rate, ream (out), rebuke, reprimand, reproach, score, tongue-lash, upbraid

Rhymes with LAMBASTE

bald-faced, barefaced, bold-faced, distaste, dough-faced, foretaste, impaste, lightfaced, moonfaced, pie-faced, po-faced, posthaste, self-paced, shamefaced, shirtwaist, snail-paced, slipcased, stone-faced, straight-faced, straitlaced, toothpaste, two-faced, unchaste, unplaced, white-faced

Learn More About LAMBASTE

Browse

Next Word in the Dictionary: lambdaPrevious Word in the Dictionary: lambaleAll Words Near: lambaste
ADVERTISEMENT
10 Charming Words for Nasty People
Put-downs with flair
Learn More
When "Literally" isn't, well, literal
How to use a word that (literally) drives some people nuts.
Watch Now
Know what this is?
Test your vocab with our fun, fast game
Go Play
Fear of cats?
Ailurophobia, and 9 other unusual fears
Learn More
Join Us
Merriam-Webster
on Facebook
Merriam-Webster
on Twitter
Bookstore: Digital and Print
Merriam-Webster references for Mobile, Kindle, print, and more.
See All
Other Merriam-Webster Dictionaries