speech

Definition of speechnext
1
as in lecture
a usually formal discourse delivered to an audience the guest of honor gave a short speech in appreciation of the award

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in language
the stock of words, pronunciation, and grammar used by a people as their basic means of communication wanting to develop a writing system for his people, Sequoya created a system of 86 symbols representing all the syllables of Cherokee speech

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 speech To regulate the size of a media company is to regulate the reach of its ideas, and thereby violate the freedom of thought, speech, and action, all of which are inseparable from each other. Robertas Bakula, Oc Register, 15 Apr. 2026 Strokes can cause death, or lead to paralysis or speech problems. Berly McCoy, NPR, 15 Apr. 2026 Per Extra, the couple even got emotional over the speeches. Lizzie Lanuza, StyleCaster, 15 Apr. 2026 Mazin Gilbert was a pioneer in speech recognition and speech synthesis, garnering over 200 patents. Thomas C. Zambito, USA Today, 15 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for speech
Recent Examples of Synonyms for speech
Noun
  • Ahead of the United States’ 250th anniversary this year, her lecture will touch on the themes and significance of the People’s Bicentennial Quilt.
    Nollyanne Delacruz, Mercury News, 14 Apr. 2026
  • The latest bots have massive context windows, meaning that students can feed in mountains of course content such as syllabi, lecture slides, and practice exams.
    Lila Shroff, The Atlantic, 10 Apr. 2026
Noun
  • These are not lazy callbacks, but shared touchstones — part of a pop cultural language the film embedded into our collective consciousness, and that the show both celebrates and lovingly skewers.
    Dave Quinn, PEOPLE, 13 Apr. 2026
  • The Oakland City Council did not author the actual language of the parcel tax initiative, which will appear as Measure E on the June ballot and is expected to generate $34 million annually.
    Shomik Mukherjee, Mercury News, 13 Apr. 2026
Noun
  • Oil prices spiked to nearly $120 per barrel earlier in the conflict but had come down last week in the hope that the peace talks would yield some stability.
    CBS News, CBS News, 13 Apr. 2026
  • Last week, oil prices dropped more than 12% on hopes that the Islamabad talks would lead to an off-ramp for the administration to start winding down the war.
    Steve Kopack, NBC news, 12 Apr. 2026
Noun
  • The nation and the world have long since become accustomed to Trump’s loutish behavior, coarse vocabulary and disrespect for the dignity of his office and America’s reputation.
    Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 8 Apr. 2026
  • Shredding was never in my dad’s vocabulary.
    Chris Willman, Variety, 7 Apr. 2026
Noun
  • Unverified business names, addresses, or official affiliations.
    Jennifer Borrasso, CBS News, 15 Apr. 2026
  • The title comes from the street address for the home Crystal and his family lived in for 46 years, a house lost in last year's devastating Palisades fires.
    ABC News, ABC News, 15 Apr. 2026
Noun
  • The result is that these Iranian characters, when talking among themselves in their native tongue, sound awfully like Americans having a conversation in the mall or at a nearby table at a restaurant.
    Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 11 Apr. 2026
  • Again, the whole bite melted on my tongue.
    Ella Gonzales, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 11 Apr. 2026
Noun
  • And Edward Norton tried to see McKellen’s poetry and raise him an even more on-the-nose piece of oration.
    Bethy Squires, Vulture, 20 Mar. 2026
  • Jackson said King was in no mood to speak the night of April 3, but found the energy to give what turned out to be his last oration.
    Jim Williams, CBS News, 17 Feb. 2026
Noun
  • The British colonial name of New Cut was different from other nearby creeks—Wadmalaw, Bohicket, Leadenwah, Stono—all named in Indigenous dialects.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 10 Apr. 2026
  • Today, many of those words fill out the default dialect of an entire generation — regardless of race, region or class — living online.
    Moriah Humiston, NBC news, 3 Apr. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Speech.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/speech. Accessed 19 Apr. 2026.

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