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ENGLISH · A WORD WITH POSSIBILITIES

speaking.

Used in speaking.

8 characters2 syllables approx.English language

Meaning & usage

adj/ˈspiː.kɪŋ/UK/ˈspi.kɪŋ/Canada, US/ˈspiː.kɪŋ/Australia[ˈspɪi̯.kɪŋ]Australia
  1. Used in speaking.

    not-comparable
    one's normal speaking voice
  2. Expressive; eloquent.

    not-comparable
    The sight was more speaking than any speech could be.
  3. Involving speaking.

    not-comparable
    It was her first speaking part: she screamed.
  4. Having the ability of speech.

    not-comparable
    speaking parrot; speaking clock
  5. Having the ability of speech. Having competence in a language.

    in-compounds · not-comparable
    The English-speaking gentleman gave us directions.
    I travel in Russian-speaking countries.
Where this word comes from

From Middle English spekinge, spekynge, spekinde, spekende, spekande, spekand, from Old English specende, sprecende (“speaking”), from Proto-Germanic *sprekandz (“speaking”), present participle of Proto-Germanic *sprekaną (“to speak”). Equivalent to speak + -ing. Cognate with Scots speikand, speikin (“speaking”), Saterland Frisian spreekend (“speaking”), West Frisian sprekkend (“speaking”), Dutch sprekend (“speaking”), German Low German sprekend (“speaking”), German sprechend (“speaking”).

noun/ˈspiː.kɪŋ/UK/ˈspi.kɪŋ/Canada, US/ˈspiː.kɪŋ/Australia[ˈspɪi̯.kɪŋ]Australia
  1. One's ability to communicate vocally in a given language.

    countable · uncountable
    I can read and understand most texts in German, but my speaking is awful.
  2. The act of communicating vocally.

    countable · uncountable
  3. A speaking exercise or exam.

    countable · uncountable
  4. An oral recitation of e.g. a story.

    countable · uncountable
Where this word comes from

From Middle English speking, spekynge, equivalent to speak + -ing.

intj/ˈspiː.kɪŋ/UK/ˈspi.kɪŋ/Canada, US/ˈspiː.kɪŋ/Australia[ˈspɪi̯.kɪŋ]Australia
  1. Indication that the person requested is the same as the one who is currently speaking.

Where this word comes from

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

verb/ˈspiː.kɪŋ/UK/ˈspi.kɪŋ/Canada, US/ˈspiː.kɪŋ/Australia[ˈspɪi̯.kɪŋ]Australia
  1. present participle and gerund of speak

    form-of · gerund · participle · present
Where this word comes from

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.

Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.