Macmillan Dictionary

Did you know?

Click any word in a definition or example to find the entry for that word

talk

 - definition
 
 
 
Close

What are red words?

90% of the time, speakers of English use just 7,500 words in speech and writing. These words appear in red, and are graded with stars. One-star words are frequent, two-star words are more frequent, and three-star words are the most frequent.

Close

Thesaurus

The thesaurus of synonyms and related words is fully integrated into the dictionary entries. Click on the T button in an entry to review the synonyms and related words for that meaning.

more
noun American English pronunciation: talk /tɔk/ 
Word Forms
Close
singulartalk
pluraltalks
Other entries for this word
  1. 1
    [countable] a conversation with someone
    have a talk (with someone):

    We had a nice talk yesterday.

    Thesaurus entry for this meaning of talk
    1. a.

      talks

       [plural] discussions between important people from opposing sides designed to help them agree about an issue
      talk with:

      He visited Egypt in March for talks with the president.

      talk between:

      the outcome of talks between the government and the rebels

      talk on:

      preliminary talks on the future of the steel industry

      have/hold talks:

      The management will be holding informal talks with union officials.

      a round/session of talks:

      the need for a fresh round of peace talks

      talks break down/collapse:

      Talks broke down last week over the issue of overtime pay.

      talks resume/reopen:

      The trade talks will resume next month.

      Thesaurus entry for this meaning of talk
  2. 2
    [countable] an informal lecture about a subject
    give/deliver a talk (on something):

    Williams gave a talk on his travels in Nepal.

    Thesaurus entry for this meaning of talk
  3. 3
    [uncountable] ordinary conversations between people

    I sat there listening to the sailors' talk.

    talk of:

    Talk of housework bored her.

    the talk turns to something (=the conversation begins to be about something):

    Then the talk turned to the upcoming exam.

    Thesaurus entry for this meaning of talk
    1. a.
      conversations and discussions about what may happen
      talk of:

      There was no talk of any cuts in wages.

      talk about:

      There is a lot of talk about welfare reform.

      hear talk:

      We hear talk about being good citizens.

      Thesaurus entry for this meaning of talk
    2. b.
      the activity of talking, especially when you think it does not achieve anything

      Most radio stations need less talk and more music.

      be all/just talk:

      She appears to be an expert on men, but it's all talk!

      despite/for all someone's talk:

      For all the government's talk, it does nothing to improve housing conditions.

      Thesaurus entry for this meaning of talk
    3. c.
      discussion of other people's private lives

      At first there was a lot of talk, but people soon lost interest.

      Thesaurus entry for this meaning of talk
    4. d.
      a style of talking used by a particular group of people

      girl/boy talk

      youngsters using up-to-the-minute street talk (=a fashionable way of talking)

      Thesaurus entry for this meaning of talk

phrases

This is the American English definition of talk. View British English definition of talk.

Change your default dictionary and thesaurus to British English.

 

charticle

a news article that consists of a chart … and only has a small amount of text

BuzzWord Article

Word of the Day

picture messaging

the sending of images and photographs from one mobile phone to another

Open Dictionary

never event

an event that should never occur in a healthcare setting …

add a word

Blog

A must for anyone with an interest in the changing face of language. The Macmillan Dictionary blog explores English as it is spoken around the world today.

global English and language change from our blog