Words to describe voice and speech
Words for how characters sound when they talk, and when they do not.
About this list
How a voice sounds, how a person talks, and how much: speech, silence, stammering, chatter, and conversation. Most useful as dialogue tags that say something the words do not.
Voice
Nouns
- voice
- good voice
- fine voice
- stress
- powerful voice
- cry
- delivery
- musical voice
- tone of voice
- emphasis
- strain
- accent
- organ
- strong accent
- foreign accent
- native accent
- pure accent
- broad accent
- lungs
- stage whisper
- articulate sound
- pronunciation
- articulation
- exclamation
- of articulation
- bellows
- ejaculation
- intonation
- utterance
- phonology
- ventriloquist
- vocalization
- clearness
- enunciation
- ventriloquism
- homonym
- accentuation
- distinctness
- euphony
Verbs
- mouth
- cry
- deliver
- give tongue
- breathe
- rap out
- utter
- pronounce
- whisper in the ear
- articulate
- accentuate
- give utterance
- ejaculate
- enunciate
- aspirate
- vocalize
- prolate †
Adjectives
Aphony
Nouns
Verbs
- cut one short
- speak low
- silence
- keep silence
- put to silence
- strike dumb
- stop one's mouth
- stick in the throat
- speak softly
- whisper
- render silent
- drown the voice
- suppress
- gag
- render mute
- muzzle
- smother
- muffle
Adjectives
- dry
- dumb
- rough
- silent
- mum
- tongue-tied
- hollow
- deaf and dumb
- mute
- mute as a fish
- husky
- speechless
- breathless
- mute as a mackerel
- raucous
- inaudible
- voiceless
- hoarse
- hoarse as a raven
- wordless
- inarticulate
- muzzled
- croaking
- sepulchral
- mute as a stockfish †
Adverbs
Speech
Nouns
- say
- talk
- speech
- power of speech
- conversation
- word of mouth
- command of words
- delivery
- flow of words
- command of language
- speaker
- formal speech
- faculty of speech
- lecture
- oral communication
- rhetoric
- spokesman
- parole
- sermon
- Hermes
- Cicero
- mouthpiece
- oratory
- orator
- recitation
- platform orator
- tirade
- eloquence
- gift of the gab
- burst of eloquence
- parlance
- stump orator
- oration
- soliloquy
- effusion
- interlocutor
- Demosthenes
- elocution
- palaver
- prattle
- harangue
- rhetorician
- declamation
- allocution
- speechifying
- locution
Verbs
- say
- come out with
- tell
- talk
- talk together
- speak of
- speak to
- let fall
- make a speech
- fall from the mouth
- deliver
- break silence
- deliver a speech
- have one's say
- say one's say
- give the tongue
- hold forth
- fall from the lips
- speak one's mind
- breathe
- open one's mouth
- be on one's legs
- raise one's voice
- lecture
- rap out
- lift one's voice
- open one's lips
- pass one's lips
- escape one's lips
- pour forth
- utter
- discourse
- utter forth
- rant
- pronounce
- vent one's rage
- flourish
- rave
- vent one's fury
- go on the stump
- stump
- take the stump
- recite
- be eloquent
- spout
- wag the tongue
- give utterance to
- harangue
Adjectives
- not written
- speaking
- spoken
- oral
- rhetorical
- outspoken
- eloquent
- unwritten
- phonetic
- talkative
- lingual
- oratorical
- declamatory
- grandiloquent
Adverbs
Stammering
Nouns
- broken voice
- broken sentences
- slip of the tongue
- whisper
- broken accents
- hesitation
- nasal tone
- nasal accent
- impediment in one's speech
- lisp
- falsetto
- twang
- drawl
- stammering
- brogue
Verbs
- mouth
- murder the language
- speak through the nose
- speak thick
- hammer
- clip one's words
- murder the King's English
- hesitate
- whisper
- murder the Queen's English
- haw
- maud †
- mince
- lisp
- hum and haw
- stutter
- mumble
- falter
- mutter
- stammer
- drawl
- croak
- muffle
- jabber
- sputter
- mispronounce
- splutter
- gibber
- snuffle
Adjectives
Loquacity
Nouns
- small talk
- much speaking
- flow of words
- jay
- tongue
- poll
- flowing
- jaw
- gossip
- parrot
- chatter
- rattle
- fluency
- talker
- Babel
- magpie
- gift of the gab
- clack
- cackle
- jabber
- chatterbox
- prattle
- twaddle
- blabber
- verbosity
- babbler
- flippancy
- ranter
- gabble
- prate
Verbs
- talk at random
- talk nonsense
- jaw
- pour forth
- gossip
- prose
- din in the ears
- chatter
- rattle
- rattle on
- babble
- patter
- be hoarse with talking
- clack
- talk oneself hoarse
- blatter †
- jabber
- blather
- palaver
- prattle
- twaddle
- be loquacious
- talk glibly
- gabble
- prate
Adjectives
- fluent
- open-mouthed
- talkative
- chatty
- long winded
- chattering
- glib
- long tongued
- flippant
- garrulous
- loquacious
- voluble
- declamatory
Adverbs
Taciturnity
Nouns
Verbs
- say nothing
- make no sign
- not speak
- keep a secret
- be silent
- keep silence
- keep mum
- close the lips
- hold one's peace
- button the lips
- hold one's tongue
- seal the lips
- stick in one's throat
- keep one's counsel
- bite one's tongue
- hold one's jaw
- hush
- hush up
- render mute
- zipper the lips
Adjectives
Conversation
Nouns
- talk
- small talk
- war of words
- talk of the town
- town talk
- conference
- congress
- table talk
- interview
- conversation
- audience
- talk of the village
- village talk
- debate
- chat
- hall of audience
- commerce
- dialogue
- reception
- oral communication
- gossip
- discourse
- idle talk
- converse
- Paul Pry
- tabby
- babble
- parley
- cackle
- interlocutor
- tattle
- chitchat
- tete-a-tete
- powwow
- durbar †
- palaver
- tittle-tattle
- colloquy
- tattler
- cancan
- confabulation
Verbs
- talk it over
- talk together
- put in a word
- hold conference
- hold on a conversation
- chat
- join in a conversation
- carry on a conversation
- commerce with
- engage in a conversation
- shine in conversation
- gossip
- discourse with
- converse
- hold converse
- commune with
- confer with
- be closeted with
- parley
- bandy words
- tattle
- tete-a-tete
- powwow
- palaver
- prate
Adjectives
Sources and licenses
- Categories and period vocabulary from the 1911 edition of Roget's Thesaurus, in the public domain. A dagger (†) marks a word its editors already called obsolete.
- Words are ordered by how often they appear in modern English, measured with wordfreq.