objurgate means to rebuke or scold strongly. Lexicurio rates it Rare gem — a strength score of 73 out of 100.
objurgate is pronounced /ˈɒbd͡ʒəɡeɪt/.
Why “objurgate” is a great word
OBJURGATE — [Verb] To rebuke or chide someone with sharp, vehement disapproval. From the Latin obiūrgāre, from ob- ("against") + iūrgāre ("to quarrel, scold"). First attested in English in the 1610s. Unlike "admonish," which implies a gentle warning, or "berate," which suggests a protracted harangue, to objurgate is to deliver a focused, scathing reproof. It is the cold crack of a judge's gavel, the precise, surgical phrase that strips away pretense, or the clipped, icy fury of a betrayed friend—a verbal strike so definitive it leaves a permanent chill in the air.
Etymology
Borrowed from Latin obiūrgātus, perfect passive participle of obiūrgō (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)), from ob- (“to, against”) + iūrgō (“to dispute, chide”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂éǵeti.
verb
- To rebuke or scold strongly.“He waited and waited, in the faith that Schinkel was dealing with them in his slow, categorical Teutonic way, and only objurgated the cabinetmaker for having in the first place paltered with his sacred trust.[…]”
- To remonstrate, complain, to rail against.