self-talk

British

noun

the act or practice of talking to oneself, either aloud or silently and mentally

positive self-talk

"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

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.

Here, she discusses her self-talk in the mirror, the significance of her Mason jar and the giant middle finger on her closet floor.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 16, 2026

If I forget something, I spiral into negative self-talk on the way back to the store.

From Salon • Mar. 6, 2025

The thing I love about kind internal self-talk is that as you start to bring a little kindness into the equation, you then start to become like one of my favorite Persian poets, Hafiz.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 7, 2025

The person sharing may turn inward on themselves with negative self-talk as a result of someone else’s take on their story, or a clicky headline cavalierly summing up their terrible experience.

From Slate • Oct. 23, 2023

He is never natural in his self-talk as is any other man.

From Hunting Sketches by Trollope, Anthony

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023