talks; talked; talking
1
a
: to say words in order to express your thoughts, feelings, opinions, etc., to someone
She never talks at the meetings.
He did most of the talking during dinner.
He loves to hear himself talk.
—often + toYou shouldn't talk to your mother that way.
—often + aboutShe still talks about your wedding and how perfect it was.
I think she's talking a lot of nonsense/rubbish/drivel.
You should listen to her; she's talking (good) sense. [=she's saying sensible things]
b
: to have a conversation or discussion with someone
We need to talk.
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.
—often + toThey talked to each other in a whisper.
Who were you talking to on the phone?
I could hear her talking to herself as she studied.
—often + withThe coach refused to talk with the reporters.
May I talk with you privately?
—often + aboutYou might feel better if you talked to someone about your problems.
The teacher talked with him about his poor grades.
When they get together, all they do is talk about sports.
c
: to have a conversation about (something)
They are in the conference room talking business.
They were talking baseball/politics.
They like to talk shop [=to talk about work] during lunch.
2
: to use your voice to say words : speak
She had laryngitis and couldn't talk.
I can't understand you. You're talking too fast.
No talking during the performance, please!
Would you please stop talking. I'm trying to watch the movie.
She talks very loud.
He is teaching the parrot to talk.
She started talking when she was only eight months old.
3
: to be willing to talk to someone after having an argument, disagreement, fight, etc., with that person
—always used as (be) talking
It's been two weeks and they're still not talking (to each other).
4
: to talk about the personal lives of other people
It's rude to talk [=gossip] about people behind their back(s).
If you continue behaving like that, people are bound to talk.
5
: to tell secret information to someone
The police forced him to talk.
6
: to give information without speaking : to communicate with signs, numbers, etc.
They were talking to each other in sign language.
When she gets excited, she talks with her hands. [=she moves her hands when she talks]
The computer is talking to the printer.
7
always followed by an adverb or preposition
: to talk until (someone or something) is in a specified state
He talked himself hoarse. [=he talked so much that his voice became hoarse]
She talked herself into a corner. [=she put herself in a bad position by talking too much]
We talked the night away. [=we talked throughout the night]
8
: to criticize someone
Note: This sense of talk is often used in phrases like look who's talking, you're one to talk, and you should talk to say that someone should not criticize another person because he or she has the same faults as that other person.
9
informal
—used to describe or suggest the size or amount of something —always used as (be) talking
To fix the car, you're talking at least $500. [=it will cost at least $500 to fix the car]
The heat was awful. I'm talking 100-degree weather and no air-conditioning.
plural talks
1
: an occurrence in which one person talks about something with another person : a conversation or discussion
—often + about
After a long talk about our relationship, we decided to get married.
—often + withThe boss would like to have a talk with you.
2
: the act of talking formally about something before a group of people : a speech or lecture
—often + on
He gave a talk on organic farming.
She is preparing a talk on Christianity in the 21st century.
3
: a formal discussion between two or more groups that are trying to reach an agreement about something
—usually plural
The country refuses to participate in talks on nuclear disarmament.
a round of trade talks
4
: a particular way of speaking
I will not allow that kind of talk in my house.
The movie has plenty of action and tough talk.
street talk [=a way of speaking that is associated with people who live in a poor part of a city]
straight talk [=speech that is very honest and direct]
5
a
: discussion about what might happen
There has been some talk of further delays. [=some people have been saying that there will/may be further delays]
I've been hearing talk that she plans to run for president.
b
: the act of talking about a subject with another person or group : discussion or conversation
When they get together, the talk always turns to [=they always talk about] their years together in high school.
6
: the things people say about what they want to do or are going to do
It's not just talk. I'm serious about moving out.
If we're ever going to solve these problems, we need less talk and more action.
The town's last mayor was all talk (and no action). [=the mayor talked about doing things but never actually did them]
Talk is cheap. [=it is easy to say that you will do something] I need to see results.
Cite this Entry
“Talk.” Merriam-Webster.com Simple Definition, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/simple/talk. Accessed 14 Apr. 2026.
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