express suggests an impulse to reveal in words, gestures, actions, or what one creates or produces.
expressed her feelings in music
vent stresses a strong inner compulsion to express especially in words.
a tirade venting his frustration
utter implies the use of the voice not necessarily in articulate speech.
utter a groan
voice does not necessarily imply vocal utterance but does imply expression or formulation in words.
an editorial voicing their concerns
broach adds the implication of disclosing for the first time something long thought over or reserved for a suitable occasion.
broached the subject of a divorce
air implies an exposing or parading of one's views often in order to gain relief or sympathy or attention.
publicly airing their differences
Example Sentences
Adjective
It's hard to believe that we were utter strangers just a few days ago.
The situation descended into utter chaos.
The children displayed an utter lack of interest in the performance.
The movie was utter garbage.
That argument is utter nonsense. Verb
She uttered a cry of pleasure.
He can hardly utter a sentence without swearing. See More
Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
But the complete and utter meltdown Southwest Airlines is currently having is unprecedented.—Krista Simmons, Sunset Magazine, 27 Dec. 2022 No doubt the federal government can change the face of markets to varying degrees (most of all, strangle them), and the Fed is part of the federal government, but to pretend that these interventions lift any economy is utter nonsense.—John Tamny, Forbes, 6 July 2022 Both Perkins and Thomas have been around the game long enough to know that this, of course, is utter nonsense.—Dan Wolken, USA TODAY, 9 June 2022 The common thread in the losses in the 2-2 record on this five-game that concludes Friday night against the Phoenix Suns has been an utter lack of defensive deterrence at moments of truth.—Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 5 Jan. 2023 While people weren’t shy about responding, what ended up standing out is the utter lack of consensus.—al, 6 Dec. 2022 But the members zeroed in on the program’s utter lack of transparency.—Steven Levy, WIRED, 8 Nov. 2022 As portrayed by Sen’s documentary, this is a life equally defined by devotion and utter lack.—K. Austin Collins, Rolling Stone, 28 Oct. 2022 Meanwhile, the electric motor is pulling steadily all the way through, hence the utter lack of head bobbing at each simu-upshift.—Dan Edmunds, Car and Driver, 18 Oct. 2022
Verb
But to step out of line during class and utter a single expression of approval of one of the State of Florida’s disfavored ideas is to risk discipline or even termination.—The Enquirer, 23 Nov. 2022 Then, right after Rhaenyra and Laenor utter their vows in a private ceremony, Viserys collapses once again.—Philip Ellis, Men's Health, 18 Sep. 2022 The first step in delivering a great Oscars speech is being able to catch your breath long enough to utter it.—Joe Reid, Vulture, 25 Mar. 2022 Receiver Amari Cooper was one of the first players to publicly utter his thoughts that this Cowboys team was special.—Dallas News, 17 Jan. 2022 Just trying to utter it aloud perfectly encapsulates its meaning (confused and disconcerted).—David Adam, Discover Magazine, 16 May 2021 The board sat in silence that night, and for the next five months refused to utter a word in my defense.—Martha Hickson, CNN, 31 Oct. 2022 When Diana asks if Erika doesn’t feel badly about the air crash victims’ families, Erika still refuses to utter a sympathetic word.—oregonlive, 14 Sep. 2022 Fisch didn’t utter a critical word about his defense.—Kent Somers, The Arizona Republic, 19 Oct. 2022 See More
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'utter.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Word History
Etymology
Adjective
Middle English, remote, from Old English ūtera outer, comparative adjective from ūt out, adverb — more at out
Verb
Middle English uttren, from utter outside, adverb, from Old English ūtor, comparative of ūt out
Share