Meaning & use
sermon
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Meanings
nouncountablereligion
A speech on a religious or moral theme, given by a priest, minister or other leader during a service.
Grammar: Usually takes an or the and a verb like give, preach or deliver: she preached a sermon.
Patterns
- a sermon on something
- give a sermon
The pastor's sermon on forgiveness lasted twenty minutes.
Every Sunday the congregation listens to a short sermon.
The rabbi delivered a thoughtful sermon on kindness to strangers.
nouncountableinformalhumorousdisapproving
A long, tedious talk in which someone tells another person how they ought to behave.
Grammar: Often follows give or get: I got a sermon about wasting money.
Patterns
- give someone a sermon
- a sermon about something
Dad gave me a sermon about being home on time.
I only asked for a loan, not a sermon on saving.
She sat through a sermon from her aunt about modern manners.
Word forms
| plural | sermons |
|---|
Common combinations
- preach a sermon
- He was asked to preach a sermon at the memorial service.
- deliver a sermon
- The bishop will deliver the sermon at midnight.
- Sunday sermon
- The Sunday sermon was about helping neighbors.
- a rousing sermon
- A rousing sermon left the crowd inspired.
- sit through a sermon
- The children fidgeted as they sat through the sermon.
Synonyms and how they differ
- homily
- A homily is a shorter, often simpler religious talk, while sermon can be longer and more formal.
- lecture
- A lecture can be on any subject, whereas a sermon is religious, or jokingly moral, in nature.
- talk
- Talk is a neutral, general word with no religious or preachy tone.
- harangue
- A harangue is an angry, forceful speech, but a sermon is usually calm and instructive, even when tedious.
Word family
- sermonize verb
- to lecture someone in a preachy way
- sermonizing noun
- preachy moral lecturing
- sermonette noun
- a very short sermon
- preach verb
- to give a sermon or religious talk
Commonly confused: sermon or service?
sermon vs service
A service is the whole act of worship, while the sermon is only the speaking part within it.
Practice
Which sentence uses sermon in its informal, humorous sense?
Choose one answer.
Only the brother's tedious moral lecture is the informal sense. The other sentences refer to a real religious talk.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “sermon”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.