pep talk

noun

: a usually brief, intense, and emotional talk designed to influence or encourage an audience

Examples of pep talk in a Sentence

The coach gave the team a pep talk before the game.

She needs a pep talk.

Recent Examples on the Web

Feel free to skip the pep talk and ask what's been taking up their energy lately. — Vanessa Van Edwards, Contributor, CNBC, 21 Oct. 2026

Cooked for Kip, helped him with homework, tucked him in, walked him to school in the morning, giving him little pep talks on the way—joy, not fear, and so on. — George Saunders, New Yorker, 18 Oct. 2026

At the very start of the pandemic, while most Americans were hunkered down, frightened for their lives and worried about job loss, RealPage hosted a virtual pep talk for landlords. — Literary Hub, 14 Oct. 2026

In the end, creation stories feels a bit like an internal pep talk for which an audience didn’t necessarily need to be present. — Sara Holdren, Vulture, 2 Oct. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1913, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for pep talk

• alcock
• beanstalk
• bedrock
• boardwalk
• catwalk
• cornstalk
• crosswalk
• deadlock
• feedstock
• fetlock
• flintlock
• goshawk