utterance

¹

[ uht-er-uhns ]

noun

1. an act of uttering; utter; uttering; vocal expression.
2. manner of speaking; power of speaking:

   His very utterance was spellbinding.

3. something uttered; utter; a word or words uttered; utter; a cry, animal's call, or the like.
4. Linguistics. any speech sequence consisting of one or more words and preceded and followed by silence: it may be coextensive with a sentence.
5. Obsolete. a public sale of goods.

utterance

²

[ uht-er-uhns ]

noun

, Archaic.

1. the utmost extremity, especially death.

utterance

¹

/ ˈʌtərəns /

noun

1. something uttered, such as a statement
2. the act or power of uttering or the ability to utter
3. logic philosophy an element of spoken language, esp a sentence Compare inscription

utterance

²

/ ˈʌtərəns /

noun

1. archaic.
   the bitter end (esp in the phrase to the utterance )

Word History and Origins

Origin of utterance¹

late Middle English word dating back to 1400–50; utter ¹, -ance

Origin of utterance²

1350–1400; Middle English < Old French outrance, oultrance, equivalent to oultr ( er ) to pass beyond (< Latin ultrā beyond) + -ance -ance

Word History and Origins

Origin of utterance¹

C13: from Old French oultrance, from oultrer to carry to excess, from Latin ultrā beyond

Example Sentences

Around my own friends, someone will wind up a conversation with a shrug and a baffling—to me—utterance of “Haters gonna hate.”

From The Daily Beast

All the while, his father continues to make headlines with his every eyebrow-raising utterance.

From The Daily Beast

His dying utterance, “I feel my whole body burning,” was widely reported.

From The Daily Beast

In recent weeks, the markets have been hanging, more than usual, on every Bernanke utterance.

From The Daily Beast

Which, in such cases—the act or the utterance, the gesture or the text—is the palimpsest of other?

From The Daily Beast

And having nothing in their minds which seeks utterance, they remain quiet.

From Project Gutenberg

The flood of language and emotion, too long suppressed, again rose to his very lips—when a slight sound stopped his utterance.

From Project Gutenberg

Its utterance filled the air like soft thunder, and a hush came over the whole room.

From Project Gutenberg

His aching heart, filled with an immeasurable love, remained without the relief of utterance.

From Project Gutenberg

He simpered awhile and toyed with trivialities of speech before he gave utterance to the matter that absorbed him.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• assertion
• pronouncement