| 释义 |
to speak of
speak S0611000 (spēk)v. spoke (spōk), spo·ken (spō′kən), speak·ing, speaks v.intr.1. To produce words by means of sounds; talk: Can the baby speak yet?2. a. To express thoughts or feelings to convey information in speech or writing: He spoke of his desire to travel. In her poem she speaks about loss.b. To convey information or ideas in text: Their book speaks about adopting children.3. a. To engage in conversation: Can we speak for a few minutes about the assignment?b. To be friendly or willing to communicate; be on speaking terms: They are no longer speaking.4. To deliver an address or lecture: The mayor spoke at the rally.5. a. To act as spokesperson: I speak for the entire staff.b. To convey information through another person: The family spoke to the media through their trusted adviser.6. a. To convey a message by nonverbal means: Actions speak louder than words.b. To give an indication or suggestion: His manners spoke of good upbringing.c. To be appealing: His poetry speaks to one's heart.7. To make a reservation or request. Used with for: Has anyone spoken for the last piece of pizza?8. a. To produce a characteristic sound: The drums spoke.b. To give off a sound on firing. Used of guns or cannon.v.tr.1. To say with the voice; pronounce or utter: She spoke the words with a French accent.2. To converse in or be able to converse in (a language): speaks German.3. To express in words; tell: speak the truth.4. Nautical To hail and communicate with (another vessel) at sea.5. To convey by nonverbal means: His eyes spoke volumes.Phrasal Verbs: speak out To talk freely and fearlessly, as about a public issue. speak up1. To speak loud enough to be audible.2. To speak without fear or hesitation.Idioms: so to speak Used to call attention to a choice of words, and especially to the metaphoric or expressive nature of a word or phrase: can't see the forest for the trees, so to speak. speak down to To speak condescendingly to: She never spoke down to her audience. spoken for Reserved or requested: Is that seat spoken for? to speak of Worthy of mention: There's nothing new to speak of.
[Middle English speken, from Old English sprecan, specan.]
speak′a·ble adj.Synonyms: speak, talk, converse1, discourse
These verbs mean to express one's thoughts by uttering words. Speak and talk, often interchangeable, are the most general: "On an occasion of this kind it becomes more than a moral duty to speak one's mind. It becomes a pleasure" (Oscar Wilde)."If you want to talk about human experience, then let's talk about it" (Deborah Eisenberg).
Converse stresses interchange of thoughts and ideas: "With thee conversing I forget all time" (John Milton).
Discourse usually refers to formal, extended speech: "When there was nothing to say, he discoursed on the nature of silence" (Stacy Schiff).Word History: Because English is a Germanic language, first-year German produces many moments of recognition for English speakers and several puzzles. For example, when we learn the verb sprechen, "to speak," and the noun Sprache, "speech, language," we wonder whether we lost the r or the Germans put one in. Sounds are more often lost than added in language change, and this is the case here. In Old English the verb was sprecan and the noun sprǣc, both with an r as in German (and in the other Germanic languages). The r-less forms began to appear in the south of England and became common in the 11th century; the forms with r disappeared completely by the middle of the 12th. A similar loss of r after a consonant and before a vowel occurred in the Middle English noun prang and its variant pronge, "severe pain, sharp pain." Pronge survives today as prong (of a pitchfork, for example). The plural of prang appears in a poem composed about 1400 as pangus, "sharp stabs of pain," and survives today as pang, "sharp, stabbing pain."Translationsspeak (spiːk) – past tense spoke (spouk) : past participle ˈspoken (ˈspoukən) – verb1. to say (words) or talk. He can't speak; He spoke a few words to us. 講話 讲话2. (often with to or (American) with) to talk or converse. Can I speak to/with you for a moment?; We spoke for hours about it. 談話 谈话3. to (be able to) talk in (a language). She speaks Russian. 講(某種語言) 讲（某种语言） 4. to tell or make known (one's thoughts, the truth etc). I always speak my mind. 說出 说出5. to make a speech, address an audience. The Prime Minister spoke on unemployment. 演說 演说ˈspeaker noun1. a person who is or was speaking. 演講者 演讲者2. (sometimes ˌloudˈspeaker) the device in a radio, record-player etc which converts the electrical impulses into audible sounds. Our record-player needs a new speaker. 揚聲器 扬声器ˈspeaking adjective1. involving speech. a speaking part in a play. 精彩的 精彩的2. used in speech. a pleasant speaking voice. 富於表情的 富于表情的ˈspoken adjective produced by speaking. the spoken word. 口語(化)的 口语（化）的 -spoken speaking in a particular way. plain-spoken; smooth-spoken. 具有...特點的說話 具有...特点的说话generally speaking in general. Generally speaking, men are stronger than women. 大致上來說 总的来说speak for itself/themselves to have an obvious meaning; not to need explaining. The facts speak for themselves. 不言而喻 不言而喻speak out to say boldly what one thinks. I feel the time has come to speak out. 大膽地說(出) 大胆地说（出） speak up to speak (more) loudly. Speak up! We can't hear you! 響亮地說 大声讲，响亮地说 to speak of worth mentioning. He has no talent to speak of. 值得一說(一提) 值得一说（一提） to speak of
to speak ofRelevant; worth mentioning; having any practical significance. There are no new ideas to speak of in this movie. For all the bluster in the media, there's nothing to speak of in these leaked documents that will have any real impact on the political landscape.See also: of, speakto speak ofWorth mentioning; see nothing to speak of; not to mention. See also: of, speak to speak of Worthy of mention: There's nothing new to speak of.See also: of, speakLegalSeeSpeakThesaurusSeespeak |