speaking

adjective

speak·ing | \ ˈspē-kiŋ

Definition of speaking

1a : that speaks : capable of speech

b : having a population that speaks a specified language —usually used in combination English-speaking countries

c : that involves talking or giving speeches a speaking role a speaking tour

2 : highly significant or expressive : eloquent

3 : resembling a living being or a real object

Examples of speaking in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Female candidates, on average, got more speaking time during Wednesday’s first 2020 Democratic presidential debate than male candidates—but the top speaker was a man, according to post-debate analyses. — Jamie Ducharme, Time, "Women, On Average, Talked More Than Men During the First Democratic Debate. But Here's Who Talked Most," 27 June 2019 Although there was no clear standout in the debate, Elizabeth Warren, Cory Booker and Julián Castro received the most speaking time. — CBS News, "Democratic debate: Candidates go head-to-head on second night — live updates," 27 June 2019 No more journalists, no more speaking events, no more publishing opportunities. — Khalid Albaih, Quartz, "We used our art to fight. Now we need it to heal us," 19 June 2019 Podcast is coming, a book is coming, more speaking engagements. — Eric Johnson, Recode, "Full Q&A: Redef CEO Jason Hirschhorn returns to Recode Media with Peter Kafka," 23 Aug. 2018 After their first speaking engagement, more speaking requests came in. — Ryan Bergeron, CNN, "Woman lost 2 sons in one night to opioids; fighting the crisis is now her life's work," 20 Apr. 2018 This would grant it the capacity to form part of the official opposition to the ruling party, to gain additional speaking time in parliament and to hold more sway in powerful government commissions. — Isaac Stanley-becker, Washington Post, "Marine Le Pen congratulates Emmanuel Macron on his victory in French presidential race," 7 May 2017 Worse, no women were included in that weekend’s meeting between movement leaders and President Kennedy, and none were in the major speaking lineup for the march—not Fannie Lou Hamer, not Diane Nash, not Rosa Parks, not Ella Baker. — Kathryn Schulz, The New Yorker, "The Many Lives of Pauli Murray," 7 Apr. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'speaking.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.