read someone the riot act

From read the Riot Act. See sense 2. The Riot Act is a historical British Act of Parliament enacted in 1714, which stated that once a statutory warning was read out to rioters and they failed to disperse within one hour, then authorities may use any force to disperse them with impunity.

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1. (idiomatic) To scold or berate somebody; to reprimand.

   She really read him the riot act about his smoking habit.

2. (Britain, Commonwealth, archaic, historical) To give a formal warning for a riotous assembly to disperse, usually through reading a section of the Riot Act.

• See also Thesaurus:reprehend

• lay down the law
• Riot Act