definitions

public speaking

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SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR public speaking ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

the act of delivering speeches in public.
the art or skill of addressing an audience effectively.

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RELATED WORDS

declamation, elocution, oratory, rhetoric, speaking, tub-thumping

Nearby words

public sale, public school, public sector, public servant, public service, public speaking, public spending, public statute, public television, public transport, public utility

Origin of public speaking

First recorded in 1755–65
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for public speaking

  • If public-speaking means to you a fuller life, you will know no greater happiness than a well-spoken speech.

    The Art of Public Speaking|Dale Carnagey (AKA Dale Carnegie) and J. Berg Esenwein

  • The head tone is the voice of ordinary conversation and should form the basis of the public-speaking style.

    Talks on Talking|Grenville Kleiser

  • The public-speaking American wrote the Declaration of Independence.

    The Art Of The Moving Picture|Vachel Lindsay

  • This was, in a sense, the beginning of my public-speaking career.

    Up From Slavery: An Autobiography|Booker T. Washington

British Dictionary definitions for public speaking

public speaking

noun

the art or practice of making speeches to large audiences

Derived Forms

public speaker, noun
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012