outspoken
Americanadjective
-
uttered or expressed with frankness or without reserve.
outspoken criticism.
-
free or unreserved in speech.
- Antonyms:
- taciturn
verb
adjective
-
candid or bold in speech
-
said or expressed with candour or boldness
Synonym Usage
See frank 1.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of outspoken
Explanation
If you often freely speak your mind, people may say that you are outspoken. How people view that particular trait in you, however, will depend on whether they agree with what you have to say or not! Use the adjective outspoken to describe someone candid and blunt, one who is direct in manner or speech. If you are an outspoken advocate for arts education in schools, you probably attend lots of school board and community meetings trying to ensure that the board does not cut music and drama from the school curriculum. If you are an outspoken critic of the way your boss does his job, you may not have yours much longer!
Vocabulary lists containing outspoken
The SAT: Words to Capture Tone, List 3
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The New SAT: Words to Capture Tone
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ACT Reading Test: Words to Capture Tone, List 5
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
But in the penultimate episode, Blunt and Sheen stumbled on to a theory that the quiet contestants were more suspicious than their outspoken brethren.
From BBC ● Nov. 3, 2026
While a changed Congress could see US lawmakers more outspoken in support of the alliance, the direction of travel is already set with Europe stepping up efforts to take more responsibility for its defence.
From Barron's ● Oct. 28, 2026
OpenAI’s security team called three outspoken safety researchers into meetings last month and asked them to unlock their personal phones.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2026
Debra Tate, Sharon Tate’s sister, has been an outspoken advocate for keeping Krenwinkel and other former followers of Manson behind bars.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2026
Though Austin was known for speaking his mind, one week before the Royal Ice Cream sit-in he ran an editorial that was outspoken, even for him.
From "The Best of Enemies" by Osha Gray Davidson
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
