1Say something in order to convey information or to express a feeling.

他焦虑不安，说不出话来。

她拒绝谈论那件事情。

1. 1.1 Have a conversation.
   谈话，交谈
   last time we spoke, you told me you couldn't do the job

   I'll speak to him if he rings up

   如果他打电话来，我会和他谈的。

   Example sentencesExamples

   • How odd is it, that writing seems more real to me than speaking to you in person?
   • Even before the incident, the emperor had spoken informally with associates of Cavour about an eventual alliance with Piedmont against Austria.
   • Kira and the enemy were now in their own conversation, speaking in their own strange language.
   • No one would have to speak to her and she would not have to speak back.
   • Maybe I would have never spoken to you, but that's because you don't speak to anyone.
   • Every other movie I've done, I speak, converse, and tell anecdotes and have fun with the press.
   • After I had spoken to all of them, there was still one person who I felt as though I still needed to speak to.
   • Liam smiled, ‘After speaking with my family I was persuaded to speak to you both about arrangements.’
   • Carl watched Emma and Michael intently as they spoke, following the conversation, looking from face to face.
   • Oh how I wish now that I had spoken to you, instead of waiting for you to speak to me.
   • I mean, if she had this information and she spoke with the police way back, why didn't she dish it out then?
   • We have mailed all sorts of Rugby Club Secretaries around the country yet many players in teams we have spoken to haven't heard about it.
   • It was her decision to go and speak to people she hadn't spoken to in years, not his.
   • But I only learned the full story when I spoke to a curator at the local museum.
   • Have you ever heard from them or spoken to them or had any contact at all?
   • She hadn't really tired to speak to Mark but then Mark hadn't spoken to her or shown any interest in talking at all to her since they had kissed.
   • They speak to readers and other bloggers who speak back, through e-mails, comments or on blogs of their own.
   • These are all the people who normally never get to speak to film-makers about these issues.
   • I managed to make her laugh even though I barely talked, but for once I was actually speaking to someone like a real person.
   • Stephen has never addressed her in conversation, never spoken to her.

   Synonyms

   have a conversation, talk, have a talk, have a discussion, converse, communicate, chat, have a chat, pass the time of day, have a word, gossip, make conversation

   informal have a confab, chew the fat/rag

   British informal natter, have a chinwag

   North American informal shoot the breeze

   rare confabulate
2. 1.2with object Utter (a word, message, etc.)
   说（话、信息、言语等）
   patients copy words spoken by the therapist

   病人们重复治疗专家的话。

   Example sentencesExamples

   • Before another word can be spoken, everything around him explodes.
   • A spell usually consisted of two parts: the words to be spoken and a description of the actions to be taken.
   • Before another word could be spoken, though, the basement door opened again and my mother and I both looked over to see Blaine step into the kitchen.
   • There were no conversations spoken, and none were needed: talk just sounded hollow and pointless in the big scheme of things.
   • Not one word had been spoken between Lena and herself.
   • Never a truer word has been spoken and if Blue's latest offering is anything to go by they are about to complete what has been a hearty and eventful meal.
   • As Rhoen spoke those words a female voice rang out behind him.
   • He tried to concentrate on the words that were being spoken around him, but they seemed far away and he struggled to make sense of them as he prepared himself for the worst.
   • Tanis looked at Merlin without a word, but the expression on his face spoke a clear message.
   • ‘I love you’ her voice trembled as she spoke the three little words he had been dying to hear.
   • There was a break in the conversation, and I spoke what I was thinking.
   • Many students felt that parents shouldn't say this to their children; others stated that their own parents had spoken those very words.
   • Before she could speak to whoever had decided to visit her she heard… no, felt a word spoken and something within the door unraveled.
   • It has not created a polarized choice between spoken and printed information.
   • His mouth opened but before a word could be spoken I walked away.
   • They sat there for a few moments, no one saying anything, but no words needing to be spoken.
   • But not a word had been spoken to her about such a marriage yet.
   • As it hovered menacingly, it spoke the now familiar words in its screeching voice.
   • Times change, priorities change, but as Faust speaks these words his real message is clear.
   • The greatest laughs come when we realise the full banality of virtual conversations, when spoken out loud.

   Synonyms

   talk, say, say anything, say something
3. 1.3with object Communicate in or be able to communicate in (a specified language)
   （会）讲（某种语言）
   my mother spoke Russian

   我母亲讲俄语。

   Example sentencesExamples

   • Among Ghanaian Americans, more than 100 languages and dialects are spoken.
   • Over sixty local languages and dialects are spoken, the most widely used of which are Kikongo, Sangha, and Bateke.
   • English is spoken as the primary language at home by 3 percent of the population.
   • The dream of many Oneidas is that one day most members will be able to speak the language fluently.
   • Now that I look back at this he might have been making fun of me for not being able to speak my own language very well, which would have been much more embarrassing.
   • She claimed to have graduated from Vassar College, to be able to speak four languages and to have attended the Sorbonne in Paris.
   • Armenians everywhere think that being able to speak the language is an important part of being Armenian.
   • Do you know which ones are able to speak the language you know?
   • He was able to convincingly speak the language of revolution and continued to do so down through the dark days of civil war and into the early 1930s.
   • Prospect New Town, for its part, speaks the language of community and celebrates authenticity.
   • They were also very intelligent and able to speak every language naturally.
   • They wanted their kids to be able to speak the language I'm speaking now.
   • Although he is able to speak some French, and presumably the receptionist is able to speak some English, neither accommodates to the other.
   • If you want to speak to us (and we do comprise the vast majority of society) then speak in a language that we understand.
   • In the ethnically diverse town, several dialects were spoken, and the language of the Husserl home probably was Yiddish.
   • Viewers have not always been able to speak this language, certainly not consciously, but it hasn't stopped us trying.
   • They have to be able to speak the languages of the scientist and the fishing industry, the tourist operator and the recreational sailor.
   • This Vanuatu tribesman could only make hand motions and repeat words in his foreign language, though everyone living on Efate speaks at least some conversational English.
   • The Philippines lacks a common language and about eighty languages and dialects are spoken in the islands.
   • Minority groups speak Arabic as well as their own languages at home, and English is widely spoken as a second language.
4. 1.4 Make a speech or contribute to a debate.
   发言；（辩论中）发言
   twenty thousand people attended to hear him speak

   有两万人出席听他发言。

   Example sentencesExamples

   • During his long speech, he finally speaks about the silence in which he has brought up his beloved son.
   • In a race for the Ohio Supreme Court, one candidate spoke freely about his views and the other filled his war chest.
   • He spoke in the early afternoon and claimed in his evidence that he left soon afterwards.
   • In my view, and speaking as someone who worked in this industry for over eleven years, payment protection insurance is one of the most grotesque financial rip-offs ever.
   • I also heard him speak at a lecture, which I found inspirational.
   • And as a priest, he's uniquely positioned to speak on the issue.
   • I suppose I am speaking from the position of a person who sees the question as, essentially, valid.
   • I was shocked and still am to a degree although I understand it better now that I've heard the jurors speak about their thinking on it.
   • I could speak and debate about people not believing things for quite some time, but I am sure that you would, as would I, like to continue.
   • I do not, however, feel authorized to speak from any other position than that constructed for me by my race, class, and sexual identity.
   • I suppose I am in a somewhat unique position to speak about the ‘new’ economy for two reasons.
   • He travelled to hear his hero speak and later sailed with him in Narragansett Bay.
   • Forensically speaking, that information is golden.
   • In 1983, I heard him speak in Washington, D.C., and he addressed this very issue.
   • They also gain a little confidence in public speaking through their oral reports to the class.
   • But the actress has always refused to speak on the issue.
   • I've just realised that I'm speaking from the position of someone who doesn't find that rules make me feel safe.
   • And in hearing her speak, I think she comes off very differently.
   • A long time ago, when I heard him speak, he said, set yourselves apart from this corrupt generation, be saints.
   • Camby speaks from a position of hegemonic ideology.

   Synonyms

   give a speech, give a talk, talk, lecture, give a lecture, deliver an address, give a sermon, hold forth, discourse, expound, expatiate, orate, harangue, sermonize, pontificate

   informal spout, spiel, speechify, preachify, jaw, sound off, drone on
5. 1.5speak for Express the views or position of (another)
   为（另一个人，另一群人）说话
   he claimed to speak for the majority of local people

   他声称要为当地的大多数人说话。

   Example sentencesExamples

   • In Alexandrian courtrooms a defendant was permitted to speak for a certain regulated time.
   • Johnson invoked race in his ads, claiming to speak for African Americans broadly.
   • Flandin spoke for the majority of conservatives when he opposed it.
   • And she does have a right to speak, but not to claim she's speaking for others in these roles.
   • The growth of Parliament was bound to encroach upon its importance by offering another body which could claim to speak for the nation.
   • It would also place a larger tax burden on all workers, including the ones she claims to be speaking for.
   • Parliament stands between the government and the governed, as the institution that, in each inter-election period, speaks for the people to the government and speaks for the government to the people.
   • However, as reps and staff they must present the collective views of the organisation when speaking for it and be held publicly accountable.
   • It was his misfortune to live at the dawn of the democratic age, when the people seldom responded to the call of those who claimed to speak for them.
   • The president speaks for all the people of this country.
   • Kweli may claim to speak for the people, but there is a reason very few are listening.
   • In this country, the Constitution is sovereign, and the Supreme Court speaks for the Constitution.
   • But I voted for it, and actually went to the floor of the Senate and spoke for it.
   • It speaks for the revaluation of matters we dare not ignore.
   • Daniel speaks for all those who believe they are what their history has made them.
   • We begin in Tallahassee with Craig Waters, he is director of public information for the Florida Supreme Court, he speaks for the court.
   • It also implies a critique of any one party, sect or voice that would claim to speak for all or the many.
   • First, the Court was fractured, producing no single opinion that spoke for a majority of the Justices.
   • Getting jobs is based on your reputation; your work and how you work with people speaks for you.
   • And you know, the priest is a symbol of one who speaks for God.

   Synonyms

   represent, speak on behalf of, act for, act on behalf of, appear for, intercede for, express the views of, act as spokesman for, act as spokeswoman for, act as spokesperson for

   advocate, champion, uphold, defend, stand up for, support, speak in support of, promote, recommend, urge, back, endorse, sponsor, espouse
6. 1.6 Convey one's views or position indirectly.
   间接表达意见（或立场）
   speaking through his solicitor, he refused to join the debate

   他通过他的律师表示拒绝参加这次辩论。

   Example sentencesExamples

   • Then his Honour referred to the majority of the Supreme Court speaking through Justice Black.
   • I don't want to say that a voice was speaking through me.
   • It was distant, full of the fury of a tempest on the sea, but it was Carmel's voice speaking through to him.
   • The ultimate authority in the church is the Spirit speaking through Scripture.
   • Zeynab will be speaking through an interpreter.
   • I… experienced a shift in awareness when reading some of the longer passages [to the court]. At times I felt like those men were speaking through me.
   • It felt like someone else had taken over my body now and was speaking through me and my lips.
   • Thank you, Sammy, for speaking through this untalented man.
   • Alexander spoke to the general community through a fortnightly column on world affairs in the West Australian among other extra-curricular activities.
   • It takes a god - Apollo, no less, speaking through his oracle at Delphi - to clear the queen's name and unbind Leontes' eyes.
   • We noticed early on that Plato, speaking through Socrates, demands that knowledge be stable.
   • By avoiding stories that involve progeny, Weamys is better able to suggest that Sidney's voice is somehow speaking through her.
   • Akidan was surprised at the words: it was as if someone else was speaking through her.
   • That's probably because there was someone else - a dream spirit or something, speaking through your mouth.
   • It was silent, until it crackled up again, Hirashi's voice speaking through it.
   • The company boss - speaking through his financial PR - also denied that the deal had been inked.
   • Now instead of just speaking through us, they can blog.
   • She could feel the presence of Ishtar welling within her and knew that the Goddess was speaking through her.
7. 1.7speak to Answer (a question) or address (an issue or problem)
   回答（问题）；处理（难题）
   we should be disappointed if the report did not speak to the issue of literacy

   如若这份报告没有提到扫盲问题，我们将感到失望。

8. 1.8speak of Mention or discuss in speech or writing.
   （发言或写作中）提到，谈及
   the books speak of betrayal

   这些书中谈到了背叛。

   Example sentencesExamples

   • Her mom had chosen to write to her in Afrikaans and spoke of the daily dealings at the house.
   • To their friends, Marie speaks of Jean in the present tense, as if he simply were away on a business trip.
   • She also spoke of a second boy who slept in the star's room in 1989 when he was around eight or nine years old.
   • Her general principles are well known and she speaks of them frequently, particularly in her Christmas broadcast each year.
   • It resembled the kind of cities she saw in books that spoke of what the future would look like.
   • The book recounts memories of former staff who speak of being very well looked after by the firm.
   • Rarely shown and unavailable on video, independent cinema aficionados speak of it reverently.
   • Nicholson speaks of his future with the same mix of bravado and worry that marked his early career.
   • The Press spoke of it in terms that could as well have been applied to a marriage between a Habsburg and a Bourbon.
   • He begins at the beginning when he speaks of the act of writing.
   • In lyrics often borrowed from popular culture they speak of defiance and resistance.
   • They are a very popular subject of conversation and often spoken of in contemporary Western Arrernte society.
   • Gray couldn't keep the pride out of his voice when he spoke of his eldest son writing a book.
   • He speaks of his experience as though it could be anyone's, though Simic's path has been anything but ordinary.
   • The family spoke of bringing the civil action for damages as recently as four weeks ago.
   • She then spoke of the occasion already referred to when she had seen the blood-stained trousers.
   • Today, when we speak of scientific knowledge, we are not referring to a body of propositions that any one person knows to be true.
   • To hear these musicians speak of how their lives are enriched by their work, touches me deeply.
   • Writing before the council of Nicaea, he speaks of Christ as a secondary deity.
   • Having travelled widely, Jones feels particularly affected and troubled by the issues he speaks of.

   Synonyms

   mention, make mention of, talk about, discuss, refer to, make reference to, bring in, introduce, remark on, comment on, allude to, advert to, deal with, treat

2speak toTalk to in order to reprove or advise.

她试图与塞伯谈谈他酗酒的事情。

1. 2.1 Talk to in order to give or obtain information.
   通风报信；窃取情报
   he had spoken to the police

   他向警察通风报信。

   Example sentencesExamples

   • He refused to speak to inquiry agents sent by his solicitors to obtain a proof of evidence and she was reduced to tape recording in conference.
   • She went on to say that when she spoke to the police she tried to help them by telling the truth.
   • Hepburn said it made no sense to use intermediaries to deal with advertising agencies, instead of speaking to them directly.
   • We so often try to think about what might be best for basic writers in our teaching and curricula without speaking to them directly and determining how they view their needs.
   • The man continued to speak to the police, all the while looking through the zoom lens of his video camera.
   • The Parties may speak to me on the issue of costs, if necessary.
   • Ellen dashed from the convertible and went to speak to the police.
   • We spoke to a real estate agent, who showed us a lovely cottage overlooking the bay.
   • They said they wanted to speak to me and she said, ‘He doesn't want to speak to the police’.
   • My instructing solicitor spoke to the applicant this morning.

   Synonyms

   speak to, talk to, make conversation with, engage in conversation
2. 2.2 Discuss or comment on formally.
   the Church wants to speak to real issues

   Example sentencesExamples

   • It's less about creating minimalist abstract objects that, by virtue of their existence, speak to formal concerns.
   • Everyone is funny and smart, and the speeches speak to real issues; this is a group of people who love comics.
   • Stephens' comments speak to another critical issue regarding confidantes.
   • So I asked a friend of the film to speak to the issue and what came back, I thought, was worth printing.
   • I've never known a gay man before, so I cannot speak to those issues.
3. 2.3 Appeal or relate to.
   有吸引力；有感染力；与…相关
   the story spoke to him directly

   这个故事引起了他的共鸣。

   Example sentencesExamples

   • As important as this contribution is, however, it speaks only to the converted.
   • Participants were then asked to reconvene and discuss the issues that spoke to them or that they deemed essential to address.
   • If you're between the ages of 32 and 48, and this story spoke to you, I very much want to hear from you.
   • They never were quite real since they never spoke to my feelings.
   • Moreover, Courtney's ability to shift the shape and contour of her face so that it assumes the appearance of an eyeless African mask speaks to her very real spiritual endowment.
   • It has a regional appeal that speaks to Newfoundlanders but also to a heroic struggle with the harsh Canadian environment, much in the way that Nanook of the North did a decade earlier.
   • Their focus on customer requirements, collaborative work, and less formal products speaks to the future.
   • Come to Arizona, a land defined by its wild beauty, its simple openness, its elemental, eternal appeal that speaks to the child in us all.
   • Drawings were sequenced in the gallery according to an internal, formal logic; they spoke to one another like semaphores.
   • These cases, however, do not speak to the issue of when or why maternal custody is justified.

3(of behaviour, an object, etc.) serve as evidence for something.

他的身体状况显示出他很疲惫。

1. 3.1archaic with object and infinitive or adverbial Show (someone or something) to be in a particular state or to possess a certain quality.
   〈古〉证明；显示
   she had seen nothing that spoke him of immoral habits

   她没看到有什么东西能证明他有放荡的习性。

   Example sentencesExamples

   • Jane Austen's Darcy does not (I quote directly from Chapter 36 of Pride and Prejudice) have in his manner anything that spoke him of irreligious or immoral habits.
   • She had never seen any thing that betrayed him to be unprincipled or unjust, anything that spoke him of irreligious or immoral habits.

4(of a musical instrument or other object) make a sound when functioning.

枪又响了。

管内空气不足流动时就能发出声音。

1. 4.1 (of a hound) bark.
   （猎狗）吠
   Example sentencesExamples

   • Tell him to speak and then wait for him to speak.
   • Every so often retrain the "Speak" command to keep this reinforcement.