viva voce
Americanadverb
noun
adverb
noun
Other Word Forms
- viva-voce adjective
Etymology
Origin of viva voce
First recorded in 1555–65; from Medieval Latin vīvā vōce “with living voice,” Latin, ablative of vīva vōx
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.
Per the viva voce system, a practice with roots in Ancient Greece, eligible voters would call out the names of their preferred candidates to a government clerk, who registered votes in a pollbook.
From The New Yorker • Nov. 5, 2018
In his last Facebook post, Krishnan referred to this new rule: “There is no equality in MPhil/PhD admission, there is no equality in viva voce – there is only denial of equality.”
From The Guardian • Jul. 2, 2017
In the 19th-century viva voce system, people went to local polling places and swore an oath that they were voting in good faith.
From Slate • Nov. 8, 2016
Both campaigns have used this viva voce style of advertising in this cycle.
From New York Times • Oct. 28, 2016
This was Mr. Froude's published version of a statement made viva voce to himself; and his version was wrong in every particular—in fact, in substance, in detail, in purport, in everything!
From Modern Leaders: Being a Series of Biographical Sketches by McCarthy, Justin
Definitions 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.
