sermonette
sermonette Lexical Profile
sermonette Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A very short sermon, or a brief religious or moral talk, such as one broadcast at the end of a television or radio programming day.
"The visiting chaplain delivered a five-minute sermonette on kindness before the choir began to sing."
A brief, often unwelcome moralizing lecture or reproof delivered in everyday conversation.
"Whenever we arrived late for dinner, my uncle would give us a stern sermonette about the value of punctuality."
• Rhymes for sermonette
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
Coined in the late 19th century by combining the noun 'sermon' (from Latin 'sermo', meaning 'discourse' or 'talk') with the French diminutive suffix '-ette'. In the mid-20th century, the term became widely associated with the brief inspirational broadcasts aired by television stations immediately before signing off for the night.