proclamation

[ prok-luh-mey-shuh n ]
/ ˌprɒk ləˈmeɪ ʃən /

noun

something that is proclaimed; a public and official announcement.
the act of proclaiming.

Origin of proclamation

1350–1400; Middle English proclama-cioun (< Middle French proclamacion) < Latin prōclāmātiōn- (stem of prōclāmātiō), equivalent to prōclāmāt(us) (past participle of prōclāmāre to proclaim) + -iōn- -ion

OTHER WORDS FROM proclamation

re·proc·la·ma·tion, noun

VOCAB BUILDER

What does proclamation mean?

A proclamation is an official announcement made in public.

Proclamation is the noun form of the verb proclaim, meaning to announce or declare something in an official or formal manner. Proclamations are typically made by public officials.

Like the similar word announcement, proclamation is often used with the verb make.

Example: The mayor called a press conference to issue a proclamation declaring an official citywide day of celebration for the new champions of baseball.

Where does proclamation come from?

The first records of proclamation come from the 1300s. It comes from the Latin word prōclāmātiōnem, from the verb prōclāmāre, meaning “to proclaim.”

Proclamation is most often used in an official government context, and proclamations are typically made by a person in a position of authority. In the past, proclamations were issued by kings and queens and often constituted a new law—picture a royal herald reading from a scroll. The most famous proclamation in the history of the United States is the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863, in which President Abraham Lincoln officially declared that the people enslaved in the territories rebelling against the Union were “forever free.”

While most proclamations made today in the U.S. are by government officials, they often don’t carry much weight. In many cases, an official government announcement called a proclamation is essentially symbolic, especially when it’s issued to recognize a person’s contributions to a city or to commemorate an event. Such proclamations often use words like whereas or be it resolved.

Proclamation is sometimes used in a casual and humorous way that’s intended to imply the kind of authority held by a government leader or monarch, as in Let it be known that I’m making the proclamation that the leftovers in the fridge are mine and mine alone, and violation of this sacred contract is punishable by death.

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What are some other forms related to proclamation?

What are some synonyms for proclamation?

What are some words that share a root or word element with proclamation

What are some words that often get used in discussing proclamation?

 

 

How is proclamation used in real life?

Proclamation is most commonly associated with the kind of formal announcements made by government officials or politicians—or, historically, by kings or queens or their royal heralds. For that reason, it is sometimes used humorously to suggest that the person speaking has such authority.

 

Try using proclamation!

Which of the following words is NOT a synonym of proclamation

A. announcement
B. decree
C. secret
D. pronouncement

Example sentences from the Web for proclamation