Confusing verbs: Speak vs. Talk

Pre-intermediate / Intermediate level 

The verbs speak and talk both generally mean ‘say words’, but there are some small differences in how they are used. Speak is more formal than talk. 

Compare: 

• I need to speak to you. 

(Formal) It is possible that:

1. The speaker does not know you very well.
2. This is in a formal setting, such as work.
3. What the person has to say is important/serious. 

• I need to talk to you. 

(Informal) It is possible that: 

1. The speaker is your friend.
2. The speaker is someone you don’t know very well, but what they have to say is informal. 

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We usually use speak for more formal presentations and lectures, and talk for more informal ones: 
​

• I've spoken to the manager about it. 
• The President refused to speak to the waiting journalists.
• Megan will speak at the conference tomorrow morning. 
• Liz will talk about the new marketing plan. 
• Jim is going to talk about the benefits of the software. 

Speak usually only focuses on the person who is producing the words (one person is speaking): 

• He spoke about the importance of taking exercise and having a good diet. 

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Talk focuses on a speaker and at least one listener, and can mean ‘have a conversation’ (there is a conversation between two or more people): 

• I hope I can meet you to talk about my plans for the company.

Compare: 

• He always looks down when he is speaking. 

The focus is on his use of his voice to produce words. ​'Speak' focuses only on the person who is producing the words. 

• I was talking to Maria yesterday. 

The focus is on the use of words as part of a conversation with someone else. 

We use speak on the telephone:

           A: Is Rita there?
           B: Who’s speaking?
           A: My name’s Anna. I work with her. 

• ‘Can I speak to Susan, please?’ ‘Speaking.’ (= at the beginning of a telephone conversation) 
• Who were you speaking to on the phone? 

When we refer to languages, we use speak:

• How many languages do you speak?
• I wish I could speak Italian. 
• I can speak several languages. 
• I want to overcome my fear of speaking English. 
• How old were you when you learned to speak? 

Speak and talk with prepositions: 

We usually use 'to' after 'speak' and 'talk'. In more formal situations, people sometimes use with:

• I need to speak to you about this conference next week.
• I was talking to Richard Moss the other day about the golf club.
• May I speak with you for a moment? (rather formal) 

'Speak to' and 'talk to' are used more often than 'speak with' and 'talk with'.

• I was talking to Tom yesterday. He told me about his new house and job.  
• Can I speak to the manager? 

'Speak to' is a little more formal than 'talk to', and is often used in polite requests. 

• Hello, could I speak to Mr Jones, please? [formal, on the telephone]

• I’ve got a complaint: I want to speak to the manager. [formal, in a restaurant or shop]

We can say:

• speak to somebody 
• talk to somebody 
• speak to somebody about something
• talk to somebody about something 

speak (to somebody) (about something/somebody) 

• I've spoken to the manager about it. 

(especially North American English) speak (with somebody) (about something/somebody) 

• Can I speak with you for a minute?

talk to somebody (about something)

• What are you talking about? (= ‘you are not making sense’ or ‘you are not being truthful’) 
• I was talking to my friend about my new job. 

Remember to use the preposition 'to' after 'speak' and 'talk'. (speak to, talk to) 

Tip: 

In British English speak to and talk to are more common than speak with and talk with.


Remember: 

We don’t use talk when referring to foreign languages: 

• I can speak German and Spanish.​​​​

We don’t use speak to focus on conversation:

• They can talk and get to know each other over dinner. 

When to use speak 
In some idioms and fixed phrases:

• Speak your mind. (= to say exactly what you are thinking, in a very direct way) 
• Come on, speak your mind! We want to know what you’re thinking.
• Speak up [often on the telephone] Could you speak up, please? I can’t hear you. 
• Generally speaking [when generalising] Generally speaking, better quality food costs more.
• Speak about / Speak in public [to address an audience, to make a speech] The professor spoke about fair trade in Asia. 
• Speak for yourself [informal] (= used to tell somebody that a general statement they have just made is not true of you) ‘We didn't play very well.’ ‘Speak for yourself!’ (= I think that I played well.)

Other examples with speak: 

• I was so shocked that I could hardly speak. 
• Actions speak louder than words.  
• Everyone speaks well of Jenny. She is so kind and intelligent. 
• I haven't spoken to Rachel since she cheated me over the bill in the restaurant. 

When to use talk
In the following examples, only talk is correct:

• talk sense
  I always listen to him: he talks a lot of sense.
• talk nonsense
  I agreed with you earlier but now you’re talking nonsense.
• talk rubbish
  He’s talking rubbish again. Don’t listen to him!
• talk business [to discuss business things, to negotiate] Let’s have some lunch, then we’ll talk business.

Other examples with talk: 

• I don't know why she has stopped talking to me. 
• ​I met my friend and we talked for an hour. 
• Let's go for a coffee and talk it over. 
• It's just talk, that's all. I don't believe a word of it. 
• You don't snore, but you do talk in your sleep. 

Speak is not usually used before sense, nonsense and other words with similar meanings. 

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Remember: 

Sometimes 'talk' and 'speak' are BOTH wrong.
We say:

• tell the truth 
• tell a lie 
• tell a story  

Now try this exercise to see how well you can use 'speak' and 'talk'. 

1. ​Michael's very direct; he always .............. his mind. 
2. My brother .............. four languages. 
3. I'm too shy to .............. in public. I get nervous in front of an audience. 
4. It was great to see my old friends again. We .............. about lots of things, but mainly about our old school days together. 
5. [on the phone] Hello, could I .............. to David Williams in the sales department, please? 
6. He's lived in Italy for five years, but he still can't .............. Italian. 
7. I don't believe him; he's .............. nonsense again. 
8. Generally .............. , people in the countryside are friendlier than people in big cities. 
9. Ok, let's .............. business. Can you offer us a discount? 
10. He was so angry with the waiter that he demanded to .............. to the hotel manager. 
11. She .............. so much that it gives me a headache. 
12. I've noticed Jack only .............. about himself. 
13. Don't say anything about this to Susan. She ............. behind people's backs. 
14. The facts .............. for themselves. 
15. Can you .............. up a little, please? I can't hear you very well. 

Answers:
1. speaks; 2. speaks; 3. speak; 4. talked; 5. speak; 6. speak; 7. talking; 8. speaking; 9. talk; 10. speak;
11. talks; 12. talks; 13. talks; 14. speak; 15. speak;