oration Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun an instance of oratory
    • he delivered an oration on the decline of family values

WordNet

O*ra"tion noun
Etymology
L. oratio, fr. orare to speak, utter, pray. See Oral, Orison.
Definitions
  1. An elaborate discourse, delivered in public, treating an important subject in a formal and dignified manner; especially, a discourse having reference to some special occasion, as a funeral, an anniversary, a celebration, or the like; -- distinguished from an argument in court, a popular harangue, a sermon, a lecture, etc.; as, Webster's oration at Bunker Hill.
    The lord archbishop . . . made a long oration. Bacon.
    Syn. -- Address; speech. See Harangue.
O*ra"tion intransitive verb
Definitions
  1. To deliver an oration. Donne.

Webster 1913