Speak vs Talk
Teresa
27/02/2023
Speak and talk are confusing English verbs. Learn the uses and differences between them.
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Difference between speak and talk
Look at these ice-breaking questions, which verb would you use: speak or talk?
- She ____ three languages
- I need to ____ to my boss as soon as possible
- I have to ____ to my mum before leaving
Sometimes these two verbs are difficult to differentiate. We are going to focus on the different contexts in which we use them as well as particular cases or exceptions.
Context: formal and informal
Sometimes both verbs are correct, the only difference that marks their use is formality. Look at this example:
- I need to speak to you.
This is probably what your boss or teacher would say if you are in trouble (hope not). This means that if that person does not know you very well or you are linked mainly by a professional relationship, that person will use the verb speak instead of talk.
On the other hand, look at this sentence:
- I need to talk to you.
You would say it to a friend or a relative, people who know you well. It is also possible that you say this to a person you’ve just met because of the context, if it is informal, then you can use it freely, it’s not disrespectful.
Tip: if you use these words appropriately in your writing you will get extra points. Imagine you need to write an informal email to a friend, if you use talk instead of speak that shows that you master the difference between resigers.
Languages
In this case there is no doubt: when we are dealing with languages we use speak. Look at the first ice-breaking question: She speaks three languages. And here you have some more examples:
- How many languages do you speak?
- I would speak German if I practised more
- The more languages I speak, the more languages I want to learn
Speaking about something Talking to someone
When you use speak, you are putting all the weight over the speaker shoulders:
- She spoke about all the advantages of speaking a second languages
When you use talk, it’s very likely that there is a conversation implicit in the sentence which means that you are talking to someone:
- We talked about the plans for the company.
Implicitly, you’ve had a conversation before and talked about something:
- I hope we can talk next week about the date of the exam.
- I hope that next week we can have a conversation about the date of the exam.