oratory
noun /ˈɒrətri/
/ˈɔːrətɔːri/
(plural oratories)
- [uncountable] the skill of making powerful and effective speeches in public synonym rhetoric
- The crowd was held spellbound by her oratory.
- [countable] a room or small building that is used for private prayer or worshipTopics Religion and festivalsc2
Word Originsense 2 Middle English: from Anglo-Norman French oratorie, from ecclesiastical Latin oratorium, based on Latin orare ‘pray, speak’.sense 1 early 16th cent.: from Latin oratoria, feminine (used as a noun) of oratorius ‘relating to an orator’.