speak
/spik/verb, noun
speak is spelled S-P-E-A-K: 5 letters and one syllable. It appears 107 times per million words in written English, the 996th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, speak means “To communicate with one's voice, to say words out loud” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in speak?
| Letters | 5: S-P-E-A-K |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 |
| In writing | 107 times per million words; the 996th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with | |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is speak?
Speak appears 107 times per million words in written English, the 996th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce speak?
- UK /spiːk/
- US /spik/
Speak has one syllable.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-speak.ogg, En-uk-to_speak.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with speak?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as speak from its last stressed vowel (/ik/):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: spake.
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of speak
- speaks present, singular, he/she/it, plural
- speaking participle, present
- spoke past, singular, he/she/it, plural
- spoken participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does speak mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To communicate with one's voice, to say words out loud.
I was so surprised I couldn't speak.
- 2
To have a conversation.
It's been ages since we've spoken.
- 3
To communicate or converse by some means other than orally, such as writing or facial expressions.
He spoke of it in his diary.
- 4
To deliver a message to a group; to deliver a speech.
This evening I shall speak on the topic of correct English usage.
- 5
To be able to communicate in a language.
He speaks Mandarin fluently.
- 6
To be able to communicate in the manner of specialists in a field.
- 7
To utter.
I was so surprised that I couldn't speak a word.
- 8
To communicate (some fact or feeling); to bespeak, to indicate.
noun
- 1
Language, jargon, or terminology used uniquely in a particular environment or group.
corporate speak; IT speak
- 2
Speech, conversation.
- 3
informalClipping of speaker point.
We will deduct speaks for hesitation.
- 4
dateda low class bar, a speakeasy.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
How do you abbreviate speak?
Wiktionary records one abbreviation of speak: spk.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Speak in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | parler , converser , jargon |
| German | sprechen, reden, rede , kommunizieren |
| Portuguese | falar , jargão, gíria |
| Spanish | hablar, fablar, fabular , charlar, platicar , jerga |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does speak come from?
From Middle English speke, speken (“to speak”), from Old English specan (“to speak”). This is usually taken to be an irregular alteration of earlier sprecan, spreocan (“to speak”), from Proto-West Germanic *sprekan, from Proto-Germanic *sprekaną (“to speak, make a sound”), from Proto-Indo-European *spreg- (“to make a sound, utter, speak”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).