speakverb
uk/spiːk/us/spiːk/spoke, spokenspeak verb (SAY WORDS)
A1 [ I or T ] to say words, to use the voice, or to have a conversation with someone:
Would you mind speaking more slowly, please?
mainly UK "Can I speak to Dan please?"
mainly US "Can I speak with Scott please?"
"Speaking." (= This is Scott.)
If he tells Julie what I said, I'll never speak to him again.
formal She spoke of her sadness over her father's death.
She speaks very highly of (= says good things about) the new director.
I can certainly come but I can't speak for my wife (= I can't tell you whether she can or not).
formal Who is going to speak for (= represent in a court of law) the accused?
He's old enough to speak for himself (= to say what he thinks).
I went with Ava - speaking of (= on the subject of) Ava, have you seen her new haircut?
We've been invited to Rachel and Jamie's wedding - speaking of which, did you know that they're moving to New York?
Speaking as (= with my experience as) a mother of four, I can tell you that children are exhausting.
Sue speaks with an American accent.
Why are you speaking in a whisper (= very quietly)?
For five whole minutes, neither of them spoke a word (= they both said nothing).
broadly, historically, strictly, etc. speaking
B2 talking from a particular point of view:
Historically speaking, the island is of great interest.
Generally speaking, it's a good school.
Strictly speaking (= if I behave according to the rules), I should report it to the police.
speak to sb
to tell someone that they have done something wrong:
The manager promised that she would speak to the person responsible.
More examples
- Choking back my anger, I tried to speak calmly.
- She cleared her throat nervously before she began to speak.
- Can I speak to you confidentially?
- "Can I speak to Isobel, please?" "She's still in bed. I'll just go and see if she's conscious yet."
- It is considered bad manners in some cultures to speak with your mouth full of food.
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Saying & uttering
- (your) every word idiom
- add
- come
- come out with sth
- every
- fall
- find your voice idiom
- floor
- get sth in
- in words of one syllable idiom
- in your own words idiom
- misspeak
- mouth
- phrase
- string
- text
- think
- use
- utterance
- volunteer
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You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:
Lecturing & addressing
Chastising & rebuking
speak verb (LANGUAGE)
A1 [ T ] to (be able to) talk in a language:
He speaks fluent French.
How many foreign languages do you speak?
I couldn't speak a word of (= I did not know any) Spanish when I got there.
I couldn't figure out what language they were speaking.
More examples
- Unable to speak a word of the language, he communicated with his hands.
- They speak a language akin to French.
- Do you speak English?
- I'd like to speak English fluently.
- Do you speak Swedish ?
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Using other languages
- anglophone
- code switching
- diglossia
- first language
- francophone
- interpret
- linguist
- lusophone
- machine translation
- modern languages
- monolingual
- multilingual
- native
- non-native speaker
- pinyin
- polyglot
- translate
- translation
- trilingual
- word
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speak verb (FORMAL TALK)
B2 [ I ] to give a formal talk to a group of people:
Who is speaking in the debate tonight?
The Queen speaks to the nation on television every Christmas.
Janet is speaking for the motion (= trying to persuade the people listening that the idea is good) and Peter is speaking against (it) (= trying to persuade them that it is bad).
More examples
- The audience clapped and cheered when she stood up to speak.
- I've deputed Lara Brown to speak for me at the conference.
- They invited her to speak especially because of her experience in inner cities.
- There was loud jeering from the opposition parties when the prime minister stood up to speak.
- He didn't want to be involved in the organization of the conference, although he was willing to attend and speak.
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Lecturing & addressing
- ad lib
- address
- angle
- extemporize
- filibuster
- floor
- hold
- hold forth
- jawbone
- lead 1
- lead off
- lecture
- maiden speech
- oration
- oratory
- sermonize
- speaking
- speechify
- talk
- talk at sb
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speak verb (SUGGEST)
[ I + adv/prep, T ] literary to show or express something without using words:
She was silent, but her eyes spoke her real feelings for him.
The whole robbery spoke of (= made it seem that there had been) inside knowledge on the part of the criminals.
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Showing and demonstrating
- act
- act sth out
- attest
- barometer
- bespeak
- bring
- bring sth forward
- flicker
- manifestation
- produce
- prove
- put up sth
- radiate
- revealing
- says something about sb/sth idiom
- signify
- strike
- suggest
- token
- wear
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Idiom(s)
be on speaking terms
none to speak of
not be on speaking terms
so to speak
speak your mind
speak for yourself
speak too soon
speak to sb
speak volumes
speak when you're spoken to!
speaks for itself
Phrasal verb(s)
speak out/up
speak to sth
speak up
speak up for sb/sth