Library / English Dictionary

SPEAK

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

Irregular inflected forms: spoke    , spoken   

 I. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Express in speech

Example:

This depressed patient does not verbalize

Synonyms:

mouth; speak; talk; utter; verbalise; verbalize

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

Hypernyms (to "speak" is one way to...):

communicate; intercommunicate (transmit thoughts or feelings)

Verb group:

verbalise; verbalize (be verbose)

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

inflect; modulate; tone (vary the pitch of one's speech)

deliver; present (deliver (a speech, oration, or idea))

generalise; generalize (speak or write in generalities)

blab; blabber; chatter; clack; gabble; gibber; maunder; palaver; piffle; prate; prattle; tattle; tittle-tattle; twaddle (speak (about unimportant matters) rapidly and incessantly)

chatter (make noise as if chattering away)

jaw; rattle on; yack; yack away; yap away (talk incessantly and tiresomely)

open up (talk freely and without inhibition)

snivel; whine (talk in a tearful manner)

murmur (speak softly or indistinctly)

maunder; mumble; mussitate; mutter (talk indistinctly; usually in a low voice)

slur (utter indistinctly)

bark (speak in an unfriendly tone)

bay (utter in deep prolonged tones)

jabber; mouth off; rabbit on; rant; rave; spout (talk in a noisy, excited, or declamatory manner)

hiss; sibilate; siss; sizz (express or utter with a hiss)

cackle (talk or utter in a cackling manner)

babble (utter meaningless sounds, like a baby, or utter in an incoherent way)

chant; intone; tone (utter monotonously and repetitively and rhythmically)

gulp (utter or make a noise, as when swallowing too quickly)

sing (produce tones with the voice)

read (look at, interpret, and say out loud something that is written or printed)

phonate; vocalise; vocalize (utter speech sounds)

troll (speak or recite rapidly or in a rolling voice)

begin (begin to speak or say)

lip off; shoot one's mouth off (speak spontaneously and without restraint)

shout (utter in a loud voice; talk in a loud voice (usually denoting characteristic manner of speaking))

whisper (speak softly; in a low voice)

peep (speak in a hesitant and high-pitched tone of voice)

speak up (speak louder; raise one's voice)

snap; snarl (utter in an angry, sharp, or abrupt tone)

blunder; blunder out; blurt; blurt out; ejaculate (utter impulsively)

rasp (utter in a grating voice)

bumble; falter; stammer; stutter (speak haltingly)

drone; drone on (talk in a monotonous voice)

blubber; blubber out (utter while crying)

talk about; talk of (discuss or mention)

whiff (utter with a puff of air)

verbalise; verbalize (be verbose)

swallow (utter indistinctly)

speak in tongues (speak unintelligibly in or as if in religious ecstasy)

enthuse (utter with enthusiasm)

Sentence frames:

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

Also:

speak up (speak louder; raise one's voice)

Derivation:

speaker (someone who expresses in language; someone who talks (especially someone who delivers a public speech or someone especially garrulous))

speaking (the utterance of intelligible speech)

speech (something spoken)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Exchange thoughts; talk with

Example:

Actions talk louder than words

Synonyms:

speak; talk

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

Hypernyms (to "speak" is one way to...):

communicate; intercommunicate (transmit thoughts or feelings)

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

rap (talk volubly)

dish the dirt; gossip (wag one's tongue; speak about others and reveal secrets or intimacies)

butterfly; chat up; coquet; coquette; dally; flirt; mash; philander; romance (talk or behave amorously, without serious intentions)

converse; discourse (carry on a conversation)

monologuise; monologuize; soliloquise; soliloquize (talk to oneself)

talk turkey (discuss frankly, often in a business context)

level (talk frankly with; lay it on the line)

cheek (speak impudently to)

dogmatise; dogmatize (speak dogmatically)

spiel (speak at great length (about something))

talk down (speak in a condescending manner, as if to a child)

orate (talk pompously)

pontificate (talk in a dogmatic and pompous manner)

discourse; dissertate; hold forth (talk at length and formally about a topic)

carry on; continue; go on; proceed (continue talking)

Sentence frames:

Something ----s
Somebody ----s
Something is ----ing PP
Somebody ----s PP
Somebody ----s to somebody

Also:

speak for (be a spokesperson for)

Derivation:

speech (the exchange of spoken words)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Use language

Example:

they speak a strange dialect

Synonyms:

speak; talk

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

Hypernyms (to "speak" is one way to...):

communicate; intercommunicate (transmit thoughts or feelings)

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

run on (talk or narrate at length)

smatter (speak with spotty or superficial knowledge)

slang (use slang or vulgar language)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s
Somebody ----s something

Sentence example:

Sam and Sue speak

Derivation:

speaking (the utterance of intelligible speech)

speech (the mental faculty or power of vocal communication)

Sense 4

Meaning:

Give a speech to

Example:

The chairman addressed the board of trustees

Synonyms:

address; speak

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

"Speak" entails doing...:

speak; talk (use language)

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

blaze away (speak with fire and passion)

memorialise; memorialize (address in a memorial)

keynote (give the keynote address to (an audience))

harangue (deliver a harangue to; address forcefully)

Sentence frames:

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

Derivation:

speaking (delivering an address to a public audience)

speech (the act of delivering a formal spoken communication to an audience)

Sense 5

Meaning:

Make a characteristic or natural sound

Example:

The drums spoke

Classified under:

Verbs of seeing, hearing, feeling

Hypernyms (to "speak" is one way to...):

sound (give off a certain sound or sounds)

Sentence frame:

Something ----s

Credits

 Context examples: 

Parkinson's Disease Quality of Life Scale (PDQUALIF) In the past 7 days, written or spoken communication is a problem for me.

(PDQUALIF - Problem with Communication in the Past 7 Days, NCI Thesaurus)

And yet there have been times when the poor girl has wanted to speak, and yet could not quite bring herself to take the plunge.

(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

“I have been wanting to speak to you, Jekyll,” began the latter.

(The Strange Case Of Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde, by Robert Louis Stevenson)

If I had thought it right to put it off, I could have spoken to Miss Tilney myself.

(Northanger Abbey, by Jane Austen)

Now, here's what I say: you'll berth forward, and you'll live hard, and you'll speak soft, and you'll keep sober till I give the word; and you may lay to that, my son.

(Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson)

She spoke, and seemed only to offend.

(Persuasion, by Jane Austen)

He could not speak, he could not move from the spot where he stood.

(Fairy Tales, by The Brothers Grimm)

People may not recognize family members or have trouble speaking, reading or writing.

(Alzheimer's Disease, NIH: National Institute on Aging)

“You were speaking about its being a girl,” said Miss Betsey.

(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)

The patients were asked to speak full sentences, and the data obtained from brain scans was then used to drive computer-generated speech.

(Scientists translate brain signals into speech sounds, National Institutes of Health)