All 5 Uses

rhetoric
in
What They Fought For - 1861-1865
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Whether or not they compared their own war for independence with the Revolution of 1776, the letters and diaries of many Confederate soldiers bristled with rhetoric of liberty and self-government and with expressions of a willingness to die for the cause.†
p. 10.7

rhetoric = the use of (or study of using) words to make a point
Texans seemed particularly ferocious on this subject, at least rhetorically.†
p. 21.9 *

rhetorically = in a manner that uses words to make a point
The most unrelenting rhetoric of revenge came from a Louisiana cavalry sergeant, a schoolteacher before the war, whose pen was at least as sharp as his saber.†
p. 22.1

rhetoric = the use of (or study of using) words to make a point
But "did the revolutionary patriots in valley forge," he asked rhetorically, "complain [when] they had to march in the snow with there bare feet and to stand the cold twenty degrees below zero without blankets?†
p. 28.9

rhetorically = in a manner that uses words to make a point
Without doubt there was a decline in the romantic flag-waving rhetoric of the war's first year or two.†
p. 42.6

rhetoric = the use of (or study of using) words to make a point

Definitions:

(1) (rhetoric)
the use of (or study of using) words to make a point -- typically implying skillful use

Rhetoric is used with many connotations. "Effective rhetoric" has a positive connotation, If someone says something is "just rhetoric," they're implying that the words may make a good surface impression, but they are lacking in substance.
(2) (meaning too rare to warrant focus)