public speaking

American  

noun

1. the act of delivering speeches in public.

2. the art or skill of addressing an audience effectively.

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public speaking British  

noun

1. the art or practice of making speeches to large audiences

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Other Word Forms

• public speaker
  noun

Etymology

Origin of public speaking

First recorded in 1755–65

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

public speaking

She says to become good at public speaking you need to be bad at it first.

From BBC ● Oct. 5, 2026

If you enjoy presenting, but are often assigned written reports, make it clear that one of your strengths is public speaking and that you’d like to do it more.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 22, 2026

There is a little mantra that I learned when I trained on public speaking at the New Jersey Leadership Collective back in 2020.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 28, 2026

"It is confusing because I've always been able to stand up and do that and go on stage, and things like public speaking have never worried me."

From BBC ● Mar. 22, 2026

“Now, Bijan absolutely hates public speaking. He probably hates public speaking as much as DeAndre Jordan hates shooting free throws.”

From "Here to Stay" by Sara Farizan