to communicate or exchange ideas, information, etc., by speaking: to talk about poetry.
to consult or confer: Talk with your adviser.
to spread a rumor or tell a confidence; gossip.
to chatter or prate.
to employ speech; perform the act of speaking: to talk very softly; to talk into a microphone.
to deliver a speech, lecture, etc.: The professor talked on the uses of comedy in the tragedies of Shakespeare.
to give or reveal confidential or incriminating information: After a long interrogation, the spy finally talked.
to communicate ideas by means other than speech, as by writing, signs, or signals.
Computers. to transmit data, as between computers or between a computer and a terminal.
to make sounds imitative or suggestive of speech.
verb (used with object)
to express in words; utter: to talk sense.
to use (a specified language or idiom) in speaking or conversing: They talk French together for practice.
to discuss: to talk politics.
Informal. (used only in progressive tenses) to focus on; signify or mean; talk about: This isn't a question of a few hundred dollars—we're talking serious money.
to bring, put, drive, influence, etc., by talk: to talk a person to sleep; to talk a person into doing something.
noun
the act of talking; speech; conversation, especially of a familiar or informal kind.
an informal speech or lecture.
a conference or negotiating session: peace talks.
report or rumor; gossip: There is a lot of talk going around about her.
a subject or occasion of talking, especially of gossip: Your wild escapades are the talk of the neighborhood.
mere empty speech: That's just a lot of talk.
a way of talking: a halting, lisping talk.
language, dialect, or lingo.
signs or sounds imitative or suggestive of speech, as the noise made by loose parts in a mechanism.
Verb Phrases
talk around,to bring (someone) over to one's way of thinking; persuade: She sounded adamant over the phone, but I may still be able to talk her around.
talk at,
to talk to in a manner that indicates that a response is not expected or wanted.
to direct remarks meant for one person to another person present; speak indirectly to.
talk away,to spend or consume (time) in talking: We talked away the tedious hours in the hospital.
talk back,to reply to a command, request, etc., in a rude or disrespectful manner: Her father never allowed them to talk back.
talk down,
to overwhelm by force of argument or by loud and persistent talking; subdue by talking.
to speak disparagingly of; belittle.
Also talk in.to give instructions to by radio for a ground-controlled landing, especially to a pilot who is unable to make a conventional landing because of snow, fog, etc.
talk down to,to speak condescendingly to; patronize: Children dislike adults who talk down to them.
talk of,to debate as a possibility; discuss: The two companies have been talking of a merger.
talk out,
to talk until conversation is exhausted.
to attempt to reach a settlement or understanding by discussion: We arrived at a compromise by talking out the problem.
British Politics.to thwart the passage of (a bill, motion, etc.) by prolonging discussion until the session of Parliament adjourns.Compare filibuster (def. 5).
talk over,
to weigh in conversation; consider; discuss.
to cause (someone) to change an opinion; convince by talking: He became an expert at talking people over to his views.
talk up,
to promote interest in; discuss enthusiastically.
to speak without hesitation; speak distinctly and openly: If you don't talk up now, you may not get another chance.
Idioms for talk
talk big, Informal. to speak boastingly; brag: He always talked big, but never amounted to anything.
talk someone's head / ear off, to bore or weary someone by excessive talk; talk incessantly: All I wanted was a chance to read my book, but my seatmate talked my ear off.
talk to death,
to impede or prevent the passage of (a bill) through filibustering.
to talk to incessantly or at great length.
Origin of talk
First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English talk(i)en “to converse, speak,” derivative (with -k suffix) of tale “speech, discourse,” tale; cognate with Frisian (eastern dialect) talken
SYNONYMS FOR talk
4, 20 prattle.
34 discourse.
17 colloquy, dialogue, parley, confabulation.
SEE SYNONYMS FOR talk ON THESAURUS.COM
synonym study for talk
1. See speak.
OTHER WORDS FROM talk
talk·a·ble,adjectivetalk·a·bil·i·ty,nountalker,nounin·ter·talk,verb (used without object)
It is encouraging to see many American companies, large and small, speak out about issues of racial inequity, though not all have backed up their talk with action.
To fight systemic racism, the investment industry needs to look at its whiteness first|jakemeth|September 10, 2020|Fortune
Prime Minister Boris Johnson signaled he would let the talks collapse if a deal isn’t made before mid-October rather than compromise.
Lagging stocks, a battered pound: investors get a painful glimpse of ‘no-deal Brexit’ Britain|Bernhard Warner|September 9, 2020|Fortune
The first wave of responses was to move to online events, virtual summits and a variety of webinars, but there’s also the question of informal talks and sales meetings that need to be rethought in order to maintain the quality of interaction.
How would an SEO agency be built today? Part 1: Consumers and trends|Sponsored Content: SEOmonitor|September 4, 2020|Search Engine Land
“We had the talk,” said Laurel Rossi, chief partnerships officer at Organic.
‘Safe and healthy’: As in person meetings resume, business execs are having the coronavirus ‘talk’|Kristina Monllos|September 4, 2020|Digiday
Virtual events are the talk of marketing departments these days.
How are you feeling about attending in-person events in 2021? Answer our short survey|Henry Powderly|September 4, 2020|Search Engine Land
What celebrity has started to talk about his or her eating disorder?
How Skinny Is Too Skinny? Israel Bans ‘Underweight’ Models|Carrie Arnold|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Hopefully not overly close, but we talk about it in the episode how similar it is.
‘Archer’ Creator Adam Reed Spills Season 6 Secrets, From Surreal Plotlines to Life Post-ISIS|Marlow Stern|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Earlier this week, Huckabee ended his Fox News talk show so he could spend time mulling another bid for the Republican nomination.
Huckabee 2016: Bend Over and Take It Like a Prisoner!|Olivia Nuzzi|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Those who come to the Dinner Party are self-selecting; they do want to talk about it.
Everyone at This Dinner Party Has Lost Someone|Samantha Levine|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
I need to resist my urge to talk them into my truth, just so I can feel more comfortable and secure.
In 2015, Let’s Try for More Compassion|Gene Robinson|January 4, 2015|DAILY BEAST
The talk turned on "El Dorado" and the fabulous treasures he had heaped up.
Sea-Dogs All!|Tom Bevan
These questions about sudden joy, this talk about officers found after being long supposed dead?
A Search For A Secret (Vol 3 of 3)|G. A. Henty
If it had been at the inn there would have been nothing to talk about at all, except about the wreck.
A Chapter of Adventures|G. A. Henty
Whatever he has heard, he must have known that it would be best to talk it over with me.
Madonna Mary|Mrs. Oliphant
For the child had faith, though she could not talk about it.
Real Folks|Mrs. A. D. T. Whitney
British Dictionary definitions for talk
talk
/ (tɔːk) /
verb
(intr; often foll by to or with)to express one's thoughts, feelings, or desires by means of words (to); speak (to)
(intr)to communicate or exchange thoughts by other meanslovers talk with their eyes
(intr usually foll by about) to exchange ideas, pleasantries, or opinions (about)to talk about the weather
(intr)to articulate words; verbalizehis baby can talk
(tr)to give voice to; utterto talk rubbish
(tr)to hold a conversation about; discussto talk business
(intr)to reveal informationthe prisoner talked after torture
(tr)to know how to communicate in (a language or idiom)he talks English
(intr)to spread rumours or gossipwe don't want the neighbours to talk
(intr)to make sounds suggestive of talking
(intr)to be effective or persuasivemoney talks
now you're talkinginformalat last you're saying something agreeable
talk bigto boast or brag
talk shopto speak about one's work, esp when meeting socially, sometimes with the effect of excluding those not similarly employed
talk the talkto speak convincingly on a particular subject, showing apparent mastery of its jargon and themes; often used in combination with the expression walk the walkSee also walk (def. 18b)
you can talkinformalyou don't have to worry about doing a particular thing yourself
you can't talkinformalyou yourself are guilty of offending in the very matter you are decrying
noun
a speech or lecturea talk on ancient Rome
an exchange of ideas or thoughtsa business talk with a colleague
idle chatter, gossip, or rumourthere has been a lot of talk about you two
a subject of conversation; themeour talk was of war
(often plural)a conference, discussion, or negotiationtalks about a settlement
a specific manner of speakingchildren's talk
See also talk about, talk at, talk back, talk down, talk into, talk out, talk round, talk through, talk up
Derived forms of talk
talkable, adjectivetalkability, nountalker, noun
Word Origin for talk
C13 talkien to talk; related to Old English talutale, Frisian talken to talk