monologue

noun

variants also monolog
Definition of monologuenext
as in speech
a long discourse delivered by a single person His monologue on the failings of modern society continued long after everyone else had stopped listening.

Related Words

Relevance

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of monologue Some short dramas hit the viewer with a bold opening monologue from the first episode, the kind that couldn’t air on television. — Lavender Au, The Dial, 30 June 2026 Tired monologue jokes about JD Vance and Bad Bunny drew relatively low-energy reactions. — Andy Hoglund, Entertainment Weekly, 29 June 2026 The goofy sketch comedies and homemade spoofs that once filled his channel gradually disappeared, replaced by melancholy short films and bleak monologues. — Stephanie Nolasco, FOXNews.com, 27 June 2026 The subject prompts a monologue from him about managerial flexibility, featuring Pep Guardiola, Ruben Amorim and Michael Carrick. — Laurie Whitwell, New York Times, 25 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for monologue
Recent Examples of Synonyms for monologue
  1. speech
  2. lecture
  3. soliloquy
  4. sermon
Noun
  • During a trip to China, Huang gave a speech at the opening of the supply chain trade fair and met Chinese politicians.
    — Kif Leswing, CNBC, 14 July 2026
  • The head of the University of Missouri System, for example, warned employees at the time that their online speech could result in termination.
    — Kacen Bayless, Kansas City Star, 14 July 2026
Definition of speech
Noun
  • Classical fans who missed festival co-artistic director Susan Waterfall’s lecture and documentary on the master can stream the film for free (though donations are encouraged).
    — Randy McMullen, Mercury News, 16 July 2026
  • In 2009, when D’Souza was a student at Oxford, the venture capitalist Peter Thiel gave a guest lecture.
    — Zach Helfand, New Yorker, 13 July 2026
Definition of lecture
Noun
  • Lots of actors can make a meal out of a Shakespearean soliloquy.
    — David Fear, Rolling Stone, 13 July 2026
  • Stylistically, this encyclopedic catch-all of genres readily segues from sermons and soliloquies to thrilling action sequences and anguished cris de coeur.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 6 July 2026
Definition of soliloquy
Noun
  • If a street preacher shouts their sermon into a bullhorn on a public street, and a nearby business owner calls the police, who is in the right?
    — Emily Holshouser July 2, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 2 July 2026
  • The Cupichs attended a parish where mass was celebrated in Latin (the liturgical changes of the Second Vatican Council were yet to come) but the sermons were spoken in Croatian.
    — René Ostberg, Encyclopedia Britannica, 2 July 2026
Definition of sermon

Browse Nearby Words

monoliths
monologue
monologues
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Monologue.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/monologue. Accessed 20 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on monologue

Nglish: Translation of monologue for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about monologue

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of raffish

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Do you 'say your piece' or 'say your peace'?

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

Why do we say 'fly off the handle'?
See More

Popular

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
child-detective
Spot the Misspelled Word July 2026 Those little red underlines can't help you now...
See All