talk

verb \ ˈtȯk \

Updated on: 8 Apr 2018

intransitive verb

1 a : to express or exchange ideas by means of spoken words

b : to convey information or communicate in any way (as with signs or sounds)

can make a trumpet talk

make the computer talk to the printer

2 : to use speech : speak

3 a : to speak idly : prate

b : gossip

c : to reveal secret or confidential information

4 : to give a talk : lecture

transitive

1 : to deliver or express in speech : utter

2 : to make the subject of conversation or discourse : discuss

talk business

3 : to influence, affect, or cause by talking

talked them into going

4 : to use (a language) for conversing or communicating : speak

—

talker

noun

— talk back

: to answer impertinently

— talk sense

: to voice rational, logical, or sensible thoughts

— talk through one's hat

: to voice irrational, illogical, or erroneous ideas

— talk turkey

: to speak frankly or bluntly

See talk defined for English-language learners

See talk defined for kids

Examples of talk in a Sentence

She never talks at the meetings.
He did most of the talking during dinner.
He loves to hear himself talk.
I think she's talking a lot of nonsense.
I can't talk right now. I'm running late.
They were talking in Spanish.
We talked on the phone until midnight.
Both sides in the dispute are now willing to talk.
They are in the conference room talking business.
She had laryngitis and couldn't talk.

Recent Examples of talk from the Web

The merger talks come after a bid to recombine the companies, which had split up more than 12 years ago, failed in 2016.

— nabila ahmed, BostonGlobe.com, "Shari Redstone wants Viacom, CBS to share leadership," 5 Apr. 2018
Because most pickleball enthusiasts can’t stop talking about pickleball, interest in the game spreads largely by word of mouth.

— kate elizabeth queram, Howard County Times, "Pickleball: the little sport that could," 4 Apr. 2018
Skripal is critically ill in the hospital, while his daughter is said to be conscious and talking.

— anthony halpin, Bloomberg.com, "Russia Accuses U.K., U.S. on Poison Case as EU Backs Britain," 4 Apr. 2018
Wood and King stayed in touch, usually talking on the phone about how the movement was going.

— jonathan m. pitts, baltimoresun.com, "Baltimore pastor remembers a young Martin Luther King Jr. as playful, intense — and brilliant," 4 Apr. 2018
On Monday, Mexican immigration officials began to register the hundreds of migrants and talked about the possibility of humanitarian visas for the most vulnerable, while others might receive permits of less than a month.

— Washington Post, "The caravan of migrants that’s alarmed President Trump has now stalled," 4 Apr. 2018
So, over the weekend, the bride-to-be reportedly flew home to Los Angeles to spend time with her mom, Doria Ragland, and talk about wedding details.

— erica gonzales, Harper's BAZAAR, "Meghan Markle Reportedly Flew Home to LA to Spend Time with Her Mom," 4 Apr. 2018
In the episode, Harris talks back to Roseanne and constantly uses the family's washing machine, and that reminded a lot of viewers of Darlene and some of the other younger characters during the earlier seasons of the series.

— tamara fuentes, Good Housekeeping, ""Roseanne" Fans Are Having a Heated Debate Over Darlene and Her Mom's Parenting Choices," 4 Apr. 2018
Even outings for fun, there’s often a component of people talking about business.

— kate magill, Columbia Flier, "For Howard's women high-tech executives, a push to learn golf," 3 Apr. 2018

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

Origin and Etymology of talk

Middle English; akin to Old English talu tale

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First Known Use: 13th century

See Words from the same year

talk Synonyms

Synonyms

articulate, bring out, enunciate, pass, say, speak, state, tell, utter, verbalize, vocalize;

Near Antonyms

stifle, suppress;

blabber, blurt, get off, shoot;

advertise, announce, blaze, broadcast, declare, post, proclaim, promulgate, publicize, publish;

affirm, allege, assert, aver, avouch, avow;

breathe, chirp, drawl, gasp, lip, mouth, murmur, purr, shout, spout, whisper;

clothe, couch, formulate, phrase, word;

comment, pipe up (with), remark;

Phrases

put into words;

talk

noun

1 : the act or an instance of talking : speech

2 : a way of speaking : language

3 : pointless or fruitless discussion : verbiage

4 : a formal discussion, negotiation, or exchange of views —often used in plural

5 a : mention, report

b : rumor, gossip

6 : the topic of interested comment, conversation, or gossip

it's the talk of the town

7 a : address, lecture

b : written analysis or discussion presented in an informal or conversational manner

8 : communicative sounds or signs resembling or functioning as talk

bird talk

See talk defined for English-language learners

Examples of talk in a Sentence

the noted author's talk on the state of the modern novel
what good will all this talk do when we need to take action now?

Recent Examples of talk from the Web

The talk of openness is in contrast to the design philosophy behind the new headquarters at Apple in nearby Cupertino.

— eliot brown, WSJ, "YouTube Shooting Raises Questions About Silicon Valley’s Open-Campus Push," 4 Apr. 2018
Since talks had been going on for some months, Ward said, time-saving steps such as building tables in advance could be taken.

— carol deptolla, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Point Burger Bar will open in New Berlin on April 11," 4 Apr. 2018
Perhaps the president’s talk of sending troops is just Trump being Trump.

— steve kurtz, Fox News, "Can Trump really send troops to guard US/Mexico border?," 4 Apr. 2018
Kinter’s talk is at 1 p.m. April 14 and included in the $4 admission.

— chris thomas, idahostatesman, "Beauty blooms in Idaho’s backcountry in the spring and summer | Idaho Statesman," 4 Apr. 2018
The talk today in entertainment is about diversity, inclusion and equality in the content created and in the workplace.

— jevon phillips, latimes.com, "After 40 years, Wendy and Richard Pini finish 'Elfquest,' the 'first American manga,' and go on fanquest," 3 Apr. 2018
The eight years under Obama and all that silly talk about a post-racial society was rather like jogging through a dog park in darkness.

— glenn nelson, Outside Online, "Op-Ed: Of Course Zinke Doesn't Care About Diversity," 3 Apr. 2018
Fouts told the Free Press in 2014 that talks of a downtown area were in the works for more than a decade, but some of the prior plans for commercial and residential development didn’t happen in part because of the economy.

— christina hall, Detroit Free Press, "Downtown dream: Fouts touts plan for $125M development around Warren city hall," 2 Apr. 2018
The recent talk is that Brunson could move up and be a late first-round selection.

— john smallwood, Philly.com, "Sports Tonight: NCAA championship game details, what to read," 2 Apr. 2018

First Known Use of talk

14th century

talk Synonyms

Synonyms

argument, argumentation, back-and-forth, colloquy, confab, confabulation, conference, consult, consultation, council, counsel, debate, deliberation, dialogue (also dialog), discussion, give-and-take, palaver, parley;

chat, conversation, rap, words;

discourse, disquisition;

bargaining, consultancy, negotiation, pourparler;

TALK Defined for English Language Learners

talk

verb

: to say words in order to express your thoughts, feelings, opinions, etc., to someone
: to have a conversation or discussion with someone
: to have a conversation about (something)

talk

noun

: an occurrence in which one person talks about something with another person : a conversation or discussion
: the act of talking formally about something before a group of people : a speech or lecture
: a formal discussion between two or more groups that are trying to reach an agreement about something

TALK Defined for Kids

talk

verb \ ˈtȯk \

talked; talking

1 : to express in speech : speak

You're talking too fast.

2 : to speak about : discuss

They're talking business.

3 : to cause or influence with words

I talked them into agreeing.

4 : to use a certain language

They were talking Spanish.

5 : to exchange ideas by means of spoken words : converse

Let's sit and talk.

6 : to pass on information other than by speaking

Can you talk with your hands?

7 : ²gossip

If you act that way, people will talk.

8 : to reveal secret information

Officials forced the spy to talk.

—

talker

noun

— talk over

: discuss 2

We need to talk over our vacation plans.

talk

noun

1 : the act or an instance of speaking with someone

We had a talk.

2 : a way of speaking : language

3 : conference

4 : ¹rumor

Has there been talk of war?

5 : the topic of comment or gossip

The President's visit is the talk of the town.

6 : an informal address

The coach gave us a talk to raise our spirits.

Learn More about talk

See words that rhyme with talk Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for talk Spanish Central: Translation of talk Nglish: Translation of talk for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of talk for Arabic speakers

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talk

talker

Examples of talk in a Sentence

Recent Examples of talk from the Web

Origin and Etymology of talk

talk Synonyms

Synonyms

Near Antonyms

Related Words

Phrases

talk

Examples of talk in a Sentence

Recent Examples of talk from the Web

First Known Use of talk

talk Synonyms

Synonyms

Related Words

TALK Defined for English Language Learners

talk

talk

TALK Defined for Kids

talk

talker

talk

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