admonishing
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ad·mon·ish
(ăd-mŏn′ĭsh)tr.v. ad·mon·ished, ad·mon·ish·ing, ad·mon·ish·es
1.
a. To counsel (another) against something to be avoided or warn (that something is dangerous): "[Another competitor in the race] admonished him on the dangers of going out too fast" (Neal Bascomb)."Magazine articles ... admonished that women's financial independence was driving a wedge between husband and wife" (Lillian Faderman).
b. To urge or exhort (someone to do something): "Writers like Emerson and Thoreau ... admonished us to develop ourselves according to nature" (E.D. Hirsch).
c. To remind (someone) of something forgotten or disregarded, as an obligation or a responsibility.
2. To reprove gently but earnestly: "Lincoln pursued his interests in defiance of established norms. Far from being praised, he was consistently admonished" (Joshua Wolf Shenk).
[Middle English amonishen, admonishen, alteration of amonesten, from Old French amonester, admonester, from Vulgar Latin *admonestāre, from Latin admonēre : ad-, ad- + monēre, to warn; see men- in Indo-European roots.]
ad·mon′ish·er n.
ad·mon′ish·ing·ly adv.
ad·mon′ish·ment n.
Synonyms: admonish, reprove, rebuke, reprimand, reproach
These verbs mean to correct or caution critically. Admonish implies the giving of advice or a warning in order to rectify or avoid something: "A gallows erected on an eminence admonished the offenders of the fate that awaited them" (William Hickling Prescott).
Reprove usually suggests a measured disapproval ranging from mild to emphatic: With a stern look, the teacher reproved the child for whispering in class.
Rebuke and reprimand both refer to sharp, often angry criticism from a higher authority: "Some of the most heated criticism ... has come from the Justice Department, which rarely rebukes other agencies in public" (Howard Kurtz)."A [university] committee ... asked its president to reprimand a scientist who tested gene-altered bacteria on trees" (New York Times).
Reproach refers to criticism, sometimes from oneself, arising from a sense of personal disappointment or moral disapproval: "He bitterly regretted his foolishness, and reproached himself for weakness of will" (J.R.R. Tolkien)."She never reproached him for his bullying manners at parties" (Louis Auchincloss).
These verbs mean to correct or caution critically. Admonish implies the giving of advice or a warning in order to rectify or avoid something: "A gallows erected on an eminence admonished the offenders of the fate that awaited them" (William Hickling Prescott).
Reprove usually suggests a measured disapproval ranging from mild to emphatic: With a stern look, the teacher reproved the child for whispering in class.
Rebuke and reprimand both refer to sharp, often angry criticism from a higher authority: "Some of the most heated criticism ... has come from the Justice Department, which rarely rebukes other agencies in public" (Howard Kurtz)."A [university] committee ... asked its president to reprimand a scientist who tested gene-altered bacteria on trees" (New York Times).
Reproach refers to criticism, sometimes from oneself, arising from a sense of personal disappointment or moral disapproval: "He bitterly regretted his foolishness, and reproached himself for weakness of will" (J.R.R. Tolkien)."She never reproached him for his bullying manners at parties" (Louis Auchincloss).
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| Adj. | 1. |  admonishing - expressing reproof or reproach especially as a correctiveunfavorable, unfavourable - not encouraging or approving or pleasing; "unfavorable conditions"; "an unfavorable comparison"; "unfavorable comments", "unfavorable impression" |
admonishing
adjectiveGiving warning:
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