speak

«speak» in Mova's school dictionary: To say words out loud; to talk: "Speak clearly." — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples, with 5 sentences of Mova's corpora that use it.

part of speech

verb (speak, speaks, spoke, spoken, speaking)

meaning for a pupil

1) To say words out loud; to talk: "Speak clearly." tree →

2) To know and use a language: "She speaks French." tree →

3) To give a talk: "speak to the class". tree →

4) To have a conversation: "Can I speak to your mum?" tree →

sense in the lessons

In school: speaking and listening skills, speak in turn, speak clearly. In safety and feelings: speak up if something is wrong. Phrases: speak up, speak out, speak to, so to speak, generally speaking, speaking of.

examples

• Please speak more slowly. tree →
• He speaks English and Irish. tree →
• Speak up if someone is bullying you. tree →
• May I speak to your teacher? tree →
• She spoke to the whole school. tree →
• The baby can't speak yet. tree →
• Speak quietly in the library. tree →
• Actions speak louder than words. tree →
• Speak but one word to me." tree →

note

Past "spoke", past participle "spoken". "Speak" is a bit more formal than "talk". You "speak a language" (not "talk a language").

In the corpora

• Some relatives get on, some do not, and a few stop speaking for years.
• To help someone with poor hearing, face them and speak clearly, without shouting.
• A free country gives people many freedoms, like speaking and voting, but freedom still has limits set by law.
• Newsreaders speak slowly and look serious about deaths to show respect for the people who died and their families.
• Translation tools help families who speak other languages understand letters, but they can make mistakes.

Trees and pragmatics

Every meaning and example of «speak» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.