1
as in lectures
a usually formal discourse delivered to an audience
the guest of honor gave a short speech in appreciation of the award
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in languages
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 speeches
All those years of speeches are housed in one place, across the street from the Capitol, in the State Library and court building.
—
Steve Large, CBS News, 8 Jan. 2026
Muse didn’t give any magical speeches when the Penguins returned from the holiday break.
—Josh Yohe, New York Times, 7 Jan. 2026
Hodges watched the crowd flow by, noting that a significant number wore tactical gear such as helmets, goggles, and ballistic vests—not the sort of accoutrements people typically wear to peaceably listen to speeches.
—Jamie Thompson, The Atlantic, 6 Jan. 2026
Your reliability can create much more lasting trust than flaky grand speeches.
—Tarot.com, Chicago Tribune, 6 Jan. 2026
Trump has also made a habit of tangentially referencing Melania during his speeches.
—Rachel Raposas, PEOPLE, 6 Jan. 2026
The Palm Springs International Film Awards gala delivered its annual blend of star wattage and Oscar-season momentum on Saturday evening, with candid speeches, emotional reveals and a last-minute reshuffling prompted by an absent honoree.
—Clayton Davis, Variety, 4 Jan. 2026
The ceremony featured speeches by about a dozen local pastors.
—Susan Gill Vardon, San Diego Union-Tribune, 31 Dec. 2025
The members of Soundgarden also reflected on Chris during their speeches.
—Andy Greene, Rolling Stone, 9 Nov. 2025
Steve Large, CBS News, 8 Jan. 2026
Muse didn’t give any magical speeches when the Penguins returned from the holiday break.
—Josh Yohe, New York Times, 7 Jan. 2026
Hodges watched the crowd flow by, noting that a significant number wore tactical gear such as helmets, goggles, and ballistic vests—not the sort of accoutrements people typically wear to peaceably listen to speeches.
—Jamie Thompson, The Atlantic, 6 Jan. 2026
Your reliability can create much more lasting trust than flaky grand speeches.
—Tarot.com, Chicago Tribune, 6 Jan. 2026
Trump has also made a habit of tangentially referencing Melania during his speeches.
—Rachel Raposas, PEOPLE, 6 Jan. 2026
The Palm Springs International Film Awards gala delivered its annual blend of star wattage and Oscar-season momentum on Saturday evening, with candid speeches, emotional reveals and a last-minute reshuffling prompted by an absent honoree.
—Clayton Davis, Variety, 4 Jan. 2026
The ceremony featured speeches by about a dozen local pastors.
—Susan Gill Vardon, San Diego Union-Tribune, 31 Dec. 2025
The members of Soundgarden also reflected on Chris during their speeches.
—Andy Greene, Rolling Stone, 9 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for speeches
Noun
-
The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.—
Charna Flam,
PEOPLE,
10 Jan. 2026
-
Google plans to expand to other languages and countries in the coming months.—
Jacqueline Munis,
Fortune,
8 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
The Marlins asked for him in trade talks with the Yankees about Cabrera last month.—
Barry Jackson,
Miami Herald,
14 Jan. 2026
-
Sudan peace talks resume in Cairo as the conflict between the army and Rapid Support Forces approaches the three-year mark since April 2023.—
Fatma Khaled,
Los Angeles Times,
14 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
The discovery of language skills in great apes — various gorillas and chimps learned substantial vocabularies in sign language or symbols — and that of tool use across the animal kingdom have, over the years, chipped away at the idea that there is any single ingredient that makes humans unique.—
Tom Chivers,
semafor.com,
13 Jan. 2026
-
Children who are read to from under a year old often have larger and more complex vocabularies than their peers by the age of three.—
Rachael O'Connor,
MSNBC Newsweek,
26 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Churchome had been moving toward remote worship already, rolling out an app with livestreams, bite-size sermons, and a live-chat function.—
Sam Kestenbaum,
Vulture,
2 Jan. 2026
-
With actual recordings of controversial sermons and tons of archival footage, the documentary investigates claims of cult-like control while exploring how Mary’s reality TV stardom complicated an already messy situation.—
Jenzia Burgos,
StyleCaster,
1 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
These are just a few of the beauty effects that were on the tips of everyone's tongues in 2025.—
Jackie Fields,
PEOPLE,
29 Dec. 2025
-
Madsen had to make sure the multilingual dialogue sounded pitch-perfect in many tongues, some of which are quite endangered.—
Sarah Shachat,
IndieWire,
19 Dec. 2025
Noun
-
His orations of statistics, stories, and argumentative persuasion at colleges were energetic, frictious, and necessary to unshackle us from grievance and tribalism.—
Alex Rosado,
MSNBC Newsweek,
11 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Like fellow North Carolinians Wednesday and MJ Lenderman—local stars descended from the likes of Lucinda Williams and Drive-By Truckers—Dowdy carves complex new visions into the idioms of his upbringing.—
Jenn Pelly,
Time,
4 Dec. 2025
-
For decades, the Grisons had printed textbooks in five Romansh idioms—a baroque solution that invited a more rational one.—
Simon Akam,
New Yorker,
1 Dec. 2025
Noun
-
For those curious, yes, the NBA’s rule book addresses situations such as Thursday’s in Chicago, when the Heat’s game against the Chicago Bulls was postponed because of condensation creating a court at the United Center deemed too slick.—
Ira Winderman,
Sun Sentinel,
10 Jan. 2026
-
The attackers accessed names, addresses, Social Security numbers and health information, among other sensitive data that could put patients at serious risk.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
10 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Speeches.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/speeches. Accessed 21 Jan. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
