English
talk
Pronunciation
  • (RP) IPA: /tɔːk/, /toːk/
  • (America) IPA: /tɔk/
    • (, ) IPA: /tɑk/, /täːk/
  • (AU, New Zealand) IPA: /toːk/
Verb

talk (talks, present participle talking; past and past participle talked)

  1. (intransitive) To communicate, usually by means of speech.
    • c. 1596–1598, William Shakespeare, “The Merchant of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies: Published According to the True Originall Copies (First Folio), London: Printed by Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, OCLC 606515358 ↗, [Act I, scene iii]:
      I will buy with you, sell with you, talk with you, walk with you, and so following, but I will not eat with you.
    • 2016, [https://web.archive.org/web/20171023035740/https://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/lets-learn-english-lesson-7-what-are-you-doing/3240468.html VOA Learning English] (public domain)
      Let’s go to my office and talk. ― I like to talk with you, Ms. Weaver.
    Let's sit down and talk.
    Although I don't speak Chinese I managed to talk with the villagers using signs and gestures.
  2. (transitive, informal) To discuss; to talk about.
    They sat down to talk business.
    That's enough about work, let's talk holidays!
  3. (transitive) To speak (a certain language).
    We talk French sometimes.
  4. (transitive, informal, chiefly used in progressive tenses) Used to emphasise the importance, size, complexity etc. of the thing mentioned.
    Are you interested in the job? They're talking big money.
    We're not talking rocket science here: it should be easy.
  5. (intransitive, slang) To confess, especially implicating others.
    Suppose he talks?
    She can be relied upon not to talk.
    They tried to make me talk.
  6. (intransitive) To criticize someone for something of which one is guilty oneself.
    I am not the one to talk.
    She is a fine one to talk.
    You should talk.
    Look who's talking.
  7. (intransitive) To gossip; to create scandal.
    People will talk.
    Aren't you afraid the neighbours will talk?
  8. (informal, chiefly used in progressive tenses) To influence someone to express something, especially a particular stance or viewpoint or in a particular manner.
    You're only sticking up for her because you like her; that's your penis talking.
    That's not like you at all, Jared. The drugs are talking. Snap out of it!
Conjugation


conjugation of talk

infinitive talk
present participle talking
past participle talked
simple progressive perfect perfect progressive
present I talk we talk I am talking we are talking I have talked we have talked I have been talking we have been talking
you talk you talk you are talking you are talking you have talked you have talked you have been talking you have been talking
he talks they talk he is talking they are talking he has talked they have talked he has been talking they have been talking
past I talked we talked I was talking we were talking I had talked we had talked I had been talking we had been talking
you talked you talked you were talking you were talking you had talked you had talked you had been talking you had been talking
he talked they talked he was talking they were talking he had talked they had talked he had been talking they had been talking
future I will talk we will talk I will be talking we will be talking I will have talked we will have talked I will have been talking we will have been talking
you will talk you will talk you will be talking you will be talking you will have talked you will have talked you will have been talking you will have been talking
he will talk they will talk he will be talking they will be talking he will have talked they will have talked he will have been talking they will have been talking
conditional I would talk we would talk I would be talking we would be talking I would have talked we would have talked I would have been talking we would have been talking
you would talk you would talk you would be talking you would be talking you would have talked you would have talked you would have been talking you would have been talking
he would talk they would talk he would be talking they would be talking he would have talked they would have talked he would have been talking they would have been talking
imperative talk

See also: talkest, talketh

Synonyms Translations Noun

talk

  1. A conversation or discussion; usually serious, but informal.
    We need to have a talk about your homework.
  2. A lecture.
    There is a talk on Shakespeare tonight.
  3. (uncountable) Gossip; rumour.
    There's been talk lately about the two of them.
  4. (preceded by the; often qualified by a following of) A major topic of social discussion.
    She is the talk of the day.
    The musical is the talk of the town.
  5. (preceded by the) A customary conversation by parent(s) or guardian(s) with their (often teenaged) child about a reality of life; in particular:
    1. A customary conversation in which parent(s) explain sexual intercourse to their child.
      Have you had the talk with Jay yet?
    2. (US) A customary conversation in which the parent(s) of a black child explain the racism and violence they may face, especially when interacting with police, and strategies to manage it.
      • 2012, Crystal McCrary, Inspiration: Profiles of Black Women Changing Our World ISBN 1613123442:
        Later, I made sure to have the talk with my son about being a black boy, […]
      • 2016, Jim Wallis, America's Original Sin: Racism, White Privilege, and the Bridge ISBN 1493403486:
        The Talk
        All the black parents I have ever spoken to have had “the talk” with their sons and daughters. “The talk” is a conversation about how to behave and not to behave with police.
      • 2016, Stuart Scott, Larry Platt, Every Day I Fight ISBN 1101983175, page 36:
        Now, I was a black man in the South, and my folks had had “the talk” with me. No, not the one about the birds and bees. This one is about the black man and the police.
  6. (uncountable, not preceded by an article) Empty boasting, promises or claims.
    The party leader's speech was all talk.
  7. Meeting to discuss a particular matter.
    The leaders of the G8 nations are currently in talks over nuclear weapons.
Synonyms Translations Translations Translations Translations

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