speaker

[spee-ker]

noun

a person who speaks.

a person who speaks formally before an audience; lecturer; orator.

(usually initial capital letter) the presiding officer of the U.S. House of Representatives, the British House of Commons, or other such legislative assembly.

Also called loudspeaker. an electroacoustic device, often housed in a cabinet, that is connected as a component in an audio system, its function being to make speech or music audible.

a book of selections for practice in declamation.

Idioms

be/not beon speakers, British. speaking(defs 9, 10).

Origin of speaker

Middle English word dating back to 1275–1325; see origin at speak, -er¹

Related formsspeak·er·ship, nounnon·speak·er, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for speakers

lecturer, speechmaker, announcer, rhetorician, mouthpiece, spokesperson, orator, elocutionist, keynoter

Examples from the Web for speakers

Contemporary Examples of speakers

Tickets go on sale to the public January 15; check back then for a link and an early peek at the inspiring lineup of speakers.
Save the Date: Women in the World 2015
December 23, 2014
The speakers emphasized the diversity of the crowd and seemed to almost play defense over any perceived media attacks.
Sharpton Recalls Civil Rights Struggle in DC March Against Police Violence
Ben Jacobs
December 13, 2014
The event was spread over two ballrooms, not one, so that the rolling parade of speakers would not be slowed by lunch.
Team Clinton Prepares for the Other Side of If
David Freedlander
November 22, 2014
What infuriates some purists is the fact that correct usage ultimately depends on the majority of speakers.
Go Ahead, End With a Preposition: Grammar Rules We All Can Live With
Nick Romeo
November 3, 2014
The speakers included a man who had been struck by a hit-and-run driver who had then been chased down by Chubby.
How Brooklyn’s First Ice Cream Girl Fought City Hall–and Won
Michael Daly
October 13, 2014

Historical Examples of speakers

So the words of the speakers in the play, stand for more than the speakers mean.
A Dish Of Orts
George MacDonald
Dick strained his eyes, but could not catch sight of the speakers.
The Dare Boys of 1776
Stephen Angus Cox
Speakers I had not heard before were now shouting and pounding the bar with their fists.
The Harbor
Ernest Poole
Adjustable extensions on the speakers brought the sound to the bone of the skull.
Join Our Gang?
Sterling E. Lanier
The speakers were very near to him; for it was so very dark that they could not observe him.
Wilson's Tales of the Borders and of Scotland, Volume VI
Various

British Dictionary definitions for speakers

speaker

noun

a person who speaks, esp at a formal occasion

See loudspeaker

Derived Formsspeakership, noun

Speaker

noun

the presiding officer in any of numerous legislative bodies, including the House of Commons in Britain and Canada and the House of Representatives in the US, Australia, and New Zealand

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

Word Origin and History for speakers

speaker

c.1300, "one who speaks," agent noun from speak (v.). First applied to "person who presides over an assembly" c.1400, from Anglo-French (late 14c.). In reference to the English Parliament, Sir Thomas de Hungerford apparently was the first.