valedictory
1
8.8
- noun
- /ˌvælɪˈdɪktəri/
- Formal
:
discurso de despedida
- Upon my return to California for two or so weeks before I came east to Juilliard, I played tennis with a valedictory air: I recognized that a period, a happy period, of my life was over.
Examples
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At the Massachusetts Historical Society, a tribe of historians and ancient friends of the Society showed up to hear a speech that we all knew to be a valedictory, even if no one wanted to admit it.
Academic text (2007) -
I'm sorry to tell you this, but you're not going to be able to deliver your valedictory address this Saturday.
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You got your valedictory speech ready?
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...to deliver the valedictory address.
-
I know I was supposed to give you a copy of my valedictory speech.
-
The commencement ritual is a valedictory for students and a celebration for families.
Academic text (2016) -
She would get up to give the valedictory, eight months pregnant, and only she, the boy now beside her, and he, their principal, would know the lie.
Fiction book (2001) -
During the graduation ceremony, she delivered a heartfelt valedictory speech that moved everyone in the audience.
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The head student prepared tirelessly for the valedictory address, making sure to mention all her classmates.
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His valedictory speech received a standing ovation, as he reflected on the years spent at school.
Synonyms
1
9.6
A formal speech or words that say goodbye, often at a ceremony
1
8.1
A formal speech by a top student that says goodbye at a graduation ceremony
A formal goodbye speech given by a top student at a graduation ceremony
Compounds
- Formal
1
8.1
A formal speech by a top student that says goodbye at a graduation ceremony
- Formal
A formal goodbye speech given by a top student at a graduation ceremony
Surface Forms
Morphology
valedictory = valediction (semi-transparent) = valediction + ory
The noun sense is historically and structurally derived from the same formation (valediction + -ory) and then used as a noun (shorthand for 'valedictory speech'); the derivation is regular but not obvious without knowing the rare base.
Etymology
Valedictory comes from the Latin parts vale 'farewell' and dicere 'to say', so it originally meant 'to say goodbye'. A valedictory is now the special farewell speech someone gives, for example at a graduation.