oralist

[awr-uh-list, ohr-]

noun

1. an advocate of oralism.

2. a deaf person who communicates through lipreading and speech.

adjective

1. of or relating to oralism.

Word History and Origins

Origin of oralist¹

First recorded in 1865–70; oral + -ist

Example Sentences

“I’m a trial lawyer with some successful circuit work. This case is too important to risk a novice Supreme Court oralist,” Walczak said in an email.

Read more on Washington Times

It was not until 1960, with the publication of the linguist William Stokoe’s monograph “Sign Language Structure,” that A.S.L. would recover from the deleterious effects of the oralist movement and be treated academically as a bona fide language.

Read more on New York Times

An oralist, he has been teaching the deaf for 40 years.

Read more on Time Magazine Archive