Meaning & use
vehement
Last updated
UK/ˈviːəmənt/
US/ˈviːəmənt/
Meaning
adjectivecomparableformal
Expressed with intense, forceful feeling, especially when disagreeing or insisting on something.
Grammar: Used before a noun or after be: vehement protest, or she was vehement.
Patterns
- vehement about something
- vehement opposition to something
He made a vehement denial of the charges.
There was vehement opposition to the new highway.
She was vehement about keeping the old library.
Word forms
| comparative | more vehement |
|---|---|
| superlative | most vehement |
Common combinations
- vehement protest
- The plan met a vehement protest.
- vehement denial
- His vehement denial convinced no one.
- vehement opposition
- Residents voiced vehement opposition.
- vehement critic
- She is a vehement critic of the policy.
- vehement argument
- A vehement argument broke out.
Synonyms and how they differ
- passionate
- Passionate can be positive and loving, while vehement points to forceful, often angry insistence.
- fierce
- Fierce suggests aggression or intensity of any kind, including in animals.
- emphatic
- Emphatic means clearly stated, but not always emotional.
- adamant
- Adamant means unwilling to change your mind, whereas vehement describes the strength of expression.
Opposites
Word family
- vehemence noun
- strength of feeling
- vehemently adverb
- in a forceful, emotional way
- vehicle noun
- unrelated in meaning but shares the Latin carrying root
Commonly confused: vehement or vigorous?
vehement vs vigorous
Vigorous means full of energy, especially physically, while vehement means strongly felt or argued.
Practice
The mayor offered a ___ denial, insisting loudly that the rumor was false.
Choose one answer.
A forceful, passionate denial is vehement. Tentative, casual and vague suggest weak commitment.
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