talk down
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Related to talk down: in turn, wreak havoc
talk
(tôk)v. talked, talk·ing, talks
v.intr.
1.
a. To exchange thoughts or opinions in spoken or sign language; converse: We talked for hours. See Synonyms at speak.
b. To utter or pronounce words: The baby can talk.
c. To imitate the sounds of human speech: The parrot talks.
2.
a. To express one's thoughts or emotions by means of spoken language: The candidate talked about the pros and cons of the issue.
b. To convey one's thoughts in a way other than by spoken words: talk with one's hands.
c. To express one's thoughts or feelings in writing: Voltaire talks about London in this book.
d. Usage Problem To convey information in text: The article talks about the latest fashions.
3.
a. To negotiate with someone; parley: Let's talk instead of fighting.
b. To consult or confer with someone: I talked with the doctor.
4. To spread rumors; gossip: If you do that, people will talk.
5. To allude to something: Are you talking about last week?
6. To reveal information concerning oneself or others, especially under pressure: Has the prisoner talked?
7. Informal To be efficacious: Money talks.
v.tr.
1. To utter or pronounce (words): Their son is talking sentences now.
2.
a. To speak about or discuss (something) or give expression to (something): talk business; talk treason.
b. Used to emphasize the extent or seriousness of something being mentioned: The police found money in the car. We're talking significant amounts of money.
3. To speak or know how to speak (a language or a language variety): The passenger talked French with the flight crew. Can you talk the local dialect?
4. To cause (someone) to be in a certain state or to do something by talking: They talked me into coming.
n.
Phrasal Verbs: 1. An exchange of ideas or opinions; a conversation: We had a nice talk over lunch.
2. A speech or lecture: He gave a talk on art.
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. often talks A conference or negotiation: peace talks.
6.
a. A particular manner of speech: baby talk; honeyed talk.
b. Empty speech or unnecessary discussion: a lot of talk and no action.
c. Jargon or slang: prison talk.
7. Something, such as the sounds of animals, felt to resemble human talk: whale talk.
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 away
To spend (a period of time) by talking: We talked the night away.
talk at
To address (someone) orally with no regard for or interest in a reaction or response.
talk back
To make an impertinent or insolent reply.
talk down
1. To think or speak of as having little worth; 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 through
To help (someone) do something by giving instructions as the task is being done.
talk up
Idioms: 1. To speak in favor of; promote: talked the candidate up; talked up the new product.
2. To speak loudly in a frank, often insolent manner.
talk big Informal
To brag.
talk sense
To speak rationally and coherently.
talk the talk
To speak knowledgeably about something, especially something that one claims or implies one can do well.
Usage Note: The phrasal verbs talk about and (less commonly) talk of sometimes have a piece of writing as their subject, as in The article talks about the humanitarian crisis in the Sudan and The book talks of continuing barriers to free trade. While this usage might seem a natural semantic extension—no different, really, from the similar and widely accepted use of the word discuss—for many people talk remains primarily associated with speaking, and using it for a written medium violates a norm of standard grammar. The Usage Panel has mixed feelings about this construction. In our 2001 survey, 58 percent accepted it in the sentence The book talks about drugs that exist in many of our communities. Writers who wish to avoid the problem can use discuss or another nonspeaking verb such as argue or maintain instead.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
talk down
vb (adverb)
1. (often foll by: to) to behave (towards) in a superior or haughty manner
2. (tr) to override (a person or argument) by continuous or loud talking
3. (Aeronautics) (tr) to give instructions to (an aircraft) by radio to enable it to land
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
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| Verb | 1. | talk down - belittle through talk |
| 2. | talk down - speak in a condescending manner, as if to a child; "He talks down to her" | |
| 3. | talk down - direct and control (the flight of an airplane during landing) via radio; "the control tower talked down the plane whose pilot fell ill" direct - give directions to; point somebody into a certain direction; "I directed them towards the town hall" |
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
talk
verb1. To engage in spoken exchange:
3. To express oneself in speech:
Idioms: open one's mouth, put in words, wag one's tongue.
4. To put into words:
articulate, communicate, convey, declare, express, say, state, tell, utter, vent, verbalize, vocalize, voice.
Idiom: give tongue to.
5. To engage in or spread gossip:
Idioms: tell tales, tell tales out of school.
6. To meet and exchange views to reach a decision:
Informal: powwow.
talk backphrasal verb
talk down
phrasal verb
talk into
To succeed in causing (a person) to act in a certain way:
argue into, bring, bring around (or round), convince, get, induce, persuade, prevail on (or upon), sell (on).
talk over
To speak together and exchange ideas and opinions about:
Slang: rap.
Idiom: go into a huddle.
talk up
1. To increase or seek to increase the importance or reputation of by favorable publicity:
Informal: plug.
Slang: hype.
2. To make known vigorously the positive features of (a product):
Slang: push.
2. The faculty, act, or product of speaking:
3. A usually formal oral communication to an audience:
4. The act or process of dealing with another to reach an agreement.Often used in plural:
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
w>talk down
vt sep
(esp Brit: in negotiations) → herunterhandeln
(= play down) → herunterspielen
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007