talked; talking; talks
1
a
: to express or exchange ideas by means of spoken words or sign language : converse
b
: to convey information or communicate in any way (as with signs or sounds)
can make a trumpet talk
make the computer talk to the printer
2
: to use (a language) for conversing or communicating : speak
… the peculiar French patois that he talked.—
Aaron Copland
Aaron Copland4
: to give a talk : lecture
1
: to deliver or express in speech : utter
2
: to make the subject of conversation or discourse : discuss
talk business
3
: to influence, affect, or cause by talking
talked them into going
4
: to use (a language) for conversing or communicating : speak
talker
noun
plural talkers
2
: a way of speaking : language
3
: pointless or fruitless discussion : verbiage
4
: a formal discussion, negotiation, or exchange of views
—often used in plural
6
: the topic of interested comment, conversation, or gossip
it's the talk of the town
7
8
: communicative sounds or signs resembling or functioning as talk
bird talk
Synonyms
Examples of talk in a Sentence
Verb
She never talks at the meetings.
He did most of the talking during dinner.
He loves to hear himself talk.
I think she's talking a lot of nonsense.
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.
They are in the conference room talking business.
She had laryngitis and couldn't talk.
Noun
the noted author's talk on the state of the modern novel
what good will all this talk do when we need to take action now?
Recent Examples on the WebGary Robbins, San Diego Union-Tribune, 14 Apr. 2024
The team and the National Hockey League aren't talking yet, but Salt Lake City and a prospective owner hungry for a franchise are rolling out the red carpet.
—The Arizona Republic, 14 Apr. 2024
Scott and Maddi were talking, Scott says, when Fravel appeared in the background and began shouting at Maddi.
—Peter Van Sant, CBS News, 13 Apr. 2024
Afterward, Stapleton talked to RS about meeting GN’R frontman Axl Rose and quizzing him on his vocal technique.
—Joseph Hudak, Rolling Stone, 12 Apr. 2024
Blinken, who is in France and is expected to discuss Haiti with President Emmanuel Macron, talked with Ali about efforts to support the transitional presidential council and a Multinational Security Support mission led by Kenya to help Haiti’s beleaguered police.
—Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 2 Apr. 2024
Backgammon cafés, where old men have been drinking tea and talking politics for centuries, buzzed with crypto gossip.
—Leif Wenar, WIRED, 2 Apr. 2024
Child tax credit expansion still on ice Remember all that talk in Congress about a bipartisan tax bill that would include a provision expanding the 2023 child tax credit for many families?
—Jeanne Sahadi, CNN, 1 Apr. 2024
The most important part is to take the time to talk and agree on what your boundaries will be.
—Harriette Cole, The Mercury News, 1 Apr. 2024
Michael Saponara, Billboard, 15 Apr. 2024
The talk among some festivalgoers ahead of Coachella suggested that this year’s lineup might underwhelm, but the number of stars joining their friends onstage surely helped with that.
—Tomás Mier, Rolling Stone, 15 Apr. 2024
Stone, McCary, and Ali Herting are in talks to produce through Fruit Tree.
—Katcy Stephan, Variety, 12 Apr. 2024
Those talks have stalled over disagreements about the details, with a senior Hamas official saying Wednesday that the group did not have 40 living hostages who met the criteria for an exchange under a proposal being discussed.
—Eric Schmitt, New York Times, 11 Apr. 2024
Regardless of the tough talk from the White House, Netanyahu on Tuesday restated his belief that an incursion into Gaza's southernmost city was essential.
—Shannon K. Crawford, ABC News, 11 Apr. 2024
But if a judge were to agree that a temporary injunction were necessary, the 150th Kentucky Derby would lose its asterisk as all the best horses would be there even if most of the talk would be about the return of the sport’s most famous trainer.
—John Cherwa, Los Angeles Times, 3 Apr. 2024
At the November summit, Biden and Xi also agreed that their governments would hold formal talks on the promises and risks of advanced artificial intelligence, which are set to take place in the coming weeks.
—Zeke Miller, Fortune, 3 Apr. 2024
The Dolphins made an offer, though, and talks will continue, coach Mike McDaniel said at the league owners meetings last week.
—Daniel Oyefusi, Miami Herald, 2 Apr. 2024
Verb
Staffers at The Point, the school’s feisty student newspaper, declined to talk publicly about these controversies.
—Gary Robbins, San Diego Union-Tribune, 14 Apr. 2024
The team and the National Hockey League aren't talking yet, but Salt Lake City and a prospective owner hungry for a franchise are rolling out the red carpet.
—The Arizona Republic, 14 Apr. 2024
Scott and Maddi were talking, Scott says, when Fravel appeared in the background and began shouting at Maddi.
—Peter Van Sant, CBS News, 13 Apr. 2024
Afterward, Stapleton talked to RS about meeting GN’R frontman Axl Rose and quizzing him on his vocal technique.
—Joseph Hudak, Rolling Stone, 12 Apr. 2024
Blinken, who is in France and is expected to discuss Haiti with President Emmanuel Macron, talked with Ali about efforts to support the transitional presidential council and a Multinational Security Support mission led by Kenya to help Haiti’s beleaguered police.
—Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 2 Apr. 2024
Backgammon cafés, where old men have been drinking tea and talking politics for centuries, buzzed with crypto gossip.
—Leif Wenar, WIRED, 2 Apr. 2024
Child tax credit expansion still on ice Remember all that talk in Congress about a bipartisan tax bill that would include a provision expanding the 2023 child tax credit for many families?
—Jeanne Sahadi, CNN, 1 Apr. 2024
The most important part is to take the time to talk and agree on what your boundaries will be.
—Harriette Cole, The Mercury News, 1 Apr. 2024
Noun
His braggadocios assist embodied everything that people loved about the Memphis rapper – brimming with boisterous boss talk and a peek into his raunchy romantic ways.
—Michael Saponara, Billboard, 15 Apr. 2024
The talk among some festivalgoers ahead of Coachella suggested that this year’s lineup might underwhelm, but the number of stars joining their friends onstage surely helped with that.
—Tomás Mier, Rolling Stone, 15 Apr. 2024
Stone, McCary, and Ali Herting are in talks to produce through Fruit Tree.
—Katcy Stephan, Variety, 12 Apr. 2024
Those talks have stalled over disagreements about the details, with a senior Hamas official saying Wednesday that the group did not have 40 living hostages who met the criteria for an exchange under a proposal being discussed.
—Eric Schmitt, New York Times, 11 Apr. 2024
Regardless of the tough talk from the White House, Netanyahu on Tuesday restated his belief that an incursion into Gaza's southernmost city was essential.
—Shannon K. Crawford, ABC News, 11 Apr. 2024
But if a judge were to agree that a temporary injunction were necessary, the 150th Kentucky Derby would lose its asterisk as all the best horses would be there even if most of the talk would be about the return of the sport’s most famous trainer.
—John Cherwa, Los Angeles Times, 3 Apr. 2024
At the November summit, Biden and Xi also agreed that their governments would hold formal talks on the promises and risks of advanced artificial intelligence, which are set to take place in the coming weeks.
—Zeke Miller, Fortune, 3 Apr. 2024
The Dolphins made an offer, though, and talks will continue, coach Mike McDaniel said at the league owners meetings last week.
—Daniel Oyefusi, Miami Herald, 2 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'talk.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Verb
Middle English; akin to Old English talu tale
First Known Use
Verb
13th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1a
Noun
14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Time Traveler
The first known use of talk was
in the 13th century
Phrases Containing talk
Dictionary Entries Near talk
Cite this Entry
“Talk.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/talk. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
Copy Citation
Kids Definition
talk
1 of 2 verb1
: to express in speech
talk sense
2
: to speak about : discuss
talk business
3
: to influence, affect, or cause by talking
talked us into agreeing
4
: to use for communicating
talk sign language
5
a
: to express or exchange ideas by means of spoken words
b
: to communicate in any way
the computer talks to the printer
6
a
: to spread gossip
b
: to reveal secret information
tried to make the suspect talk
talker
noun
talk
2 of 2 noun1
: the act or an instance of talking
2
: a way of speaking
3
: pointless or useless discussion
all talk and no action
4
: a formal discussion or exchange of views : conference
6
: the topic of comment or gossip
it's the talk of the town
More from Merriam-Webster on talk
Nglish: Translation of talk for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of talk for Arabic Speakers
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share