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talk down

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talk

  [tawk]
Use talk down in a Sentence
–verb (used without object)
1. to communicate or exchange ideas, information, etc., by speaking: to talk about poetry.
2. to consult or confer: Talk with your adviser.
3. to spread a rumor or tell a confidence; gossip.
4. to chatter or prate.
5. to employ speech; perform the act of speaking: to talk very softly; to talk into a microphone.
6. to deliver a speech, lecture, etc.: The professor talked on the uses of comedy in the tragedies of Shakespeare.
7. to give or reveal confidential or incriminating information: After a long interrogation, the spy finally talked.
8. to communicate ideas by means other than speech, as by writing, signs, or signals.
9. Computers. to transmit data, as between computers or between a computer and a terminal.
10. to make sounds imitative or suggestive of speech.
–verb (used with object)
11. to express in words; utter: to talk sense.
12. to use (a specified language or idiom) in speaking or conversing: They talk French together for practice.
13. to discuss: to talk politics.
14. Informal. (used only in progressive tenses) to focus on; signify or mean; talk about: This isn't a question of a few hundred dollars—we're talking serious money.
15. to bring, put, drive, influence, etc., by talk: to talk a person to sleep; to talk a person into doing something.
–noun
16. the act of talking; speech; conversation, esp. of a familiar or informal kind.
17. an informal speech or lecture.
18. a conference or negotiating session: peace talks.
19. report or rumor; gossip: There is a lot of talk going around about her.
20. a subject or occasion of talking, esp. of gossip: Your wild escapades are the talk of the neighborhood.
21. mere empty speech: That's just a lot of talk.
22. a way of talking: a halting, lisping talk.
23. language, dialect, or lingo.
24. signs or sounds imitative or suggestive of speech, as the noise made by loose parts in a mechanism.
—Verb phrases
25. talk around, to bring (someone) over to one's way of thinking; persuade: She sounded adamant over the phone, but I may still be able to talk her around.
26. talk at,
a. to talk to in a manner that indicates that a response is not expected or wanted.
b. to direct remarks meant for one person to another person present; speak indirectly to.
27. talk away, to spend or consume (time) in talking: We talked away the tedious hours in the hospital.
28. talk back, to reply to a command, request, etc., in a rude or disrespectful manner: Her father never allowed them to talk back.
29. talk down,
a. to overwhelm by force of argument or by loud and persistent talking; subdue by talking.
b. to speak disparagingly of; belittle.
c. Also, talk in. to give instructions to by radio for a ground-controlled landing, esp. to a pilot who is unable to make a conventional landing because of snow, fog, etc.
30. talk down to, to speak condescendingly to; patronize: Children dislike adults who talk down to them.
31. talk of, to debate as a possibility; discuss: The two companies have been talking of a merger.
32. talk out,
a. to talk until conversation is exhausted.
b. to attempt to reach a settlement or understanding by discussion: We arrived at a compromise by talking out the problem.
c. British Politics. to thwart the passage of (a bill, motion, etc.) by prolonging discussion until the session of Parliament adjourns. Compare filibuster (def. 5).
33. talk over,
a. to weigh in conversation; consider; discuss.
b. to cause (someone) to change an opinion; convince by talking: He became an expert at talking people over to his views.
34. talk up,
a. to promote interest in; discuss enthusiastically.
b. to speak without hesitation; speak distinctly and openly: If you don't talk up now, you may not get another chance.
—Idioms
35. talk big, Informal. to speak boastingly; brag: He always talked big, but never amounted to anything.
36. talk someone's head or ear off, to bore or weary someone by excessive talk; talk incessantly: All I wanted was a chance to read my book, but my seatmate talked my ear off.
37. talk to death,
a. to impede or prevent the passage of (a bill) through filibustering.
b. to talk to incessantly or at great length.
Origin:
1175–1225; ME talk(i)en to converse, speak, deriv. (with -k suffix) of tale speech, discourse, tale; c. Fris (E dial.) talken

Related forms:
talk⋅a⋅ble, adjective
talk⋅a⋅bil⋅i⋅ty, noun
talker, noun

Synonyms:
1. See speak. 4, 20. prattle. 34. discourse. 17. colloquy, dialogue, parley, confabulation.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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talk   (tôk)   
v.   talked, talk·ing, talks

v.   tr.

  1. To articulate (words): The baby is talking sentences now.

  2. To give expression to in words: talk treason.

  3. To speak of or discuss (something): talk music; talk business;

  4. To speak or know how to speak in (an idiom or language): talked French with the flight crew.

  5. To gain, influence, or bring into a specified state by talking: talked me into coming; talked their way out of trouble.

  6. To spend (a period of time) by or as if by talking: talked the evening away.

v.   intr.

  1. To converse by means of spoken language: We talked for hours. See Synonyms at speak.

  2. To articulate words: The baby can talk.

  3. To imitate the sounds of human speech: The parrot talks.

  4. To express one's thoughts or emotions by means of spoken language: talked about the pros and cons of the issue.

  5. To convey one's thoughts in a way other than by spoken words: talk with one's hands.

  6. To express one's thoughts in writing: Voltaire talks about London in this book.

  7. To parley or negotiate with someone: Let's talk before continuing to fight.

  8. To spread rumors; gossip: If you do that, people will talk.

  9. To allude to something: Are you talking about last week?

  10. To consult or confer with someone: I talked with the doctor.

  11. To reveal information concerning oneself or others, especially under pressure: Has the prisoner talked?

  12. Informal To be efficacious: Money talks.

n.  

  1. An exchange of ideas or opinions; a conversation.

  2. A speech or lecture.

  3. Hearsay, rumor, or speculation: There is talk of bankruptcy.

  4. A subject of conversation: a musical that is the talk of the town.

  5. A conference or negotiation. Often used in the plural: peace talks.

  6. Jargon; slang: prison talk.

  7. Empty speech or unnecessary discussion: much talk and no action.

  8. A particular manner of speech: baby talk; honeyed talk.

  9. Something, such as the sounds of animals, felt to resemble human talk: whale talk.

  10. To persuade: I talked them around to my point of view.

  11. To speak indirectly about: talked around the subject but never got to the point.

  12. To make an impertinent or insolent reply.

  13. To make a belligerent response: heavy guns talking back.

  14. To depreciate: talked down the importance of the move.

  15. To speak with insulting condescension: talked down to her subordinates.

  16. To silence (a person), especially by speaking in a loud and domineering manner.

  17. To direct and control (the flight of an aircraft during an approach for landing) by radioed instructions either from the ground or a nearby aircraft.

  18. To discuss (a matter) exhaustively: I talked out the problem with a therapist.

  19. To resolve or settle by discussion.

  20. Chiefly British To block (proposed legislation) by filibustering.

  21. To consider thoroughly in conversation; discuss: talked the matter over.

  22. To win (someone) over by persuasion: talked them over to our side.

  23. To speak in favor of; promote: talked the candidate up; talked up the new product.

  24. To speak up in a frank, often insolent manner.

Phrasal Verb(s):
talk around

  1. To persuade: I talked them around to my point of view.

  2. To speak indirectly about: talked around the subject but never got to the point.

talk atTo address orally with no regard for or interest in a reaction or response.
talk back

  1. To make an impertinent or insolent reply.

  2. To make a belligerent response: heavy guns talking back.

talk down

  1. To depreciate: talked down the importance of the move.

  2. To speak with insulting condescension: talked down to her subordinates.

  3. To silence (a person), especially by speaking in a loud and domineering manner.

  4. To direct and control (the flight of an aircraft during an approach for landing) by radioed instructions either from the ground or a nearby aircraft.

talk out

  1. To discuss (a matter) exhaustively: I talked out the problem with a therapist.

  2. To resolve or settle by discussion.

  3. Chiefly British To block (proposed legislation) by filibustering.

talk over

  1. To consider thoroughly in conversation; discuss: talked the matter over.

  2. To win (someone) over by persuasion: talked them over to our side.

talk up

  1. To speak in favor of; promote: talked the candidate up; talked up the new product.

  2. To speak up in a frank, often insolent manner.


Idiom(s):
talk big Informal To brag.

Idiom(s):
talk senseTo speak rationally and coherently.

[Middle English talken; see del-2 in Indo-European roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Idioms & Phrases

talk down

  1. Belittle, depreciate, as in They talked down the importance of the move.

  2. Silence someone by speaking loudly and persistently, as in They talked down whatever objections she brought up. [Early 1800s]

  3. Help an aircraft to land by giving directions via radio, as in The fog was so thick the control tower had to talk us down. [c. 1940]

  4. See talk down to.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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