Library / English Dictionary

HAVE WORDS

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 I. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Censure severely or angrily

Example:

The customer dressed down the waiter for bringing cold soup

Synonyms:

trounce; take to task; scold; reprimand; remonstrate; rebuke; rag; lecture; lambaste; lambast; jaw; have words; dress down; chide; chew up; chew out; call on the carpet; call down; berate; bawl out

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

Hypernyms (to "have words" is one way to...):

criticise; criticize; knock; pick apart (find fault with; express criticism of; point out real or perceived flaws)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "have words"):

castigate; chasten; chastise; correct; objurgate (censure severely)

brush down; tell off (reprimand)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s somebody
Somebody ----s PP

Credits