Communication & Speech

Phrasal verbs for speaking and expressing

Introduction

Communication is more than just talking—it's knowing when to "speak up," when to "hold back," and how to "get your point across." Phrasal verbs add nuance to how we describe verbal interactions.

This chapter focuses on the phrasal verbs of communication: how we start conversations, make arguments, share information, and sometimes fail to connect with others.

Themes

All Phrasal Verbs in This Chapter (79)

• speak up To speak louder or express your opinion
• point out To draw attention to something
• get across To communicate successfully
• talk over To discuss something thoroughly
• come out with To say something unexpectedly
• go on about To talk too much about something
• speak out To publicly express an opinion, especially a controversial one
• cut in To interrupt someone while speaking
• go on To continue speaking; to happen
• fill in To give someone information they missed
• butt in To interrupt rudely
• spell out To explain something in detail
• hear out To listen to someone completely
• own up To admit to doing something wrong
• run by To tell someone about an idea to get their opinion
• talk into To persuade someone to do something
• talk out of To persuade someone not to do something
• blurt out To say something suddenly without thinking
• shut up To stop talking
• water down To dilute; to make less strong or effective
• play down To make something seem less important
• talk round To persuade someone to change their mind
• pick up on To notice or become aware of something
• back up To support someone's statement
• brush off To dismiss or ignore someone
• gloss over To avoid discussing something important
• touch on To mention something briefly
• call back To return a phone call
• ring up To telephone someone (British)
• write back To reply in writing
• put across To communicate an idea successfully
• pipe down To be quiet
• clam up To suddenly stop talking
• get at To imply or suggest
• chime in To add to a conversation
• trail off To gradually stop speaking
• ramble on To talk at length without focus
• drone on To talk boringly for a long time
• harp on To keep talking about something repeatedly
• mouth off To speak disrespectfully
• pipe up To start speaking suddenly
• prattle on To talk at length about trivial things
• rabbit on To talk excessively
• rattle off To say something quickly and easily
• reel off To recite quickly from memory
• sound off To express opinions loudly
• talk back To reply rudely to someone in authority
• talk down to To speak condescendingly
• waffle on To talk vaguely or at length
• bang on about To talk at length about something repeatedly
• let on To reveal or pretend
• fess up To confess or admit
• read out To read aloud
• call out To publicly criticize or challenge
• hit back To respond defensively to criticism
• fire back To respond quickly and aggressively
• answer back To reply rudely
• shout out To call loudly or give public praise
• fob off To give an unsatisfactory answer to dismiss someone
• palm off To get rid of by deception
• butt out To stop interfering
• weigh in To give an opinion in a discussion
• wade in To intervene forcefully
• jump in To join a conversation suddenly
• break in To interrupt a conversation
• talk at To speak without listening
• chat away To talk continuously in a friendly way
• natter on To chat idly
• yak on To talk excessively
• gab away To talk a lot
• blabber on To talk foolishly or too much
• hold back To keep information secret
• keep back To not reveal information
• leave out To omit from what is said
• clue in To inform someone
• tip off To give secret information
• give away To accidentally reveal
• let slip To accidentally reveal
• spill out To reveal suddenly or uncontrollably