Verbs for Communication · Verbs: Verbal Action

to engage in a conversation with someone

"We converse in English every day."

"We sat at the coffee shop for nearly two hours just to converse about our plans for the upcoming summer vacation together."

to have a casual and light conversation without sharing a lot of information

"They confabulated about the old times."

"The two old friends sat on the porch and began to confabulate about their shared memories from high school many decades ago."

to share an idea with someone and get their thoughts or opinions

"Bounce ideas off me."

"I need to bounce some new marketing strategies off you to see if they are viable before presenting them."

to suddenly say something, especially in a rude or surprising way

"He came out with a rude remark."

"During the heated argument, he suddenly came out with a shocking and hurtful accusation."

to speak formally and at length, especially in a public setting

"The politician orated for two hours."

"The politician loves to orate in front of large crowds but his speeches are often long and boring and do not contain any real substance or new ideas."

to describe an event, experience, etc to someone in a detailed manner

"She recounts her adventures to eager listeners."

"The survivor was asked to recount the terrifying events of the accident for the official police report."

to communicate with others, particularly while spending time with them

"Children need to interact with peers."

"Teachers should encourage students to interact with each other during group activities to develop social skills and teamwork."

to chat casually for an extended period, often in a lively manner

"They gabbed all afternoon over coffee."

"The teenagers spent the entire afternoon gabbing on their phones instead of doing their homework or studying for their upcoming exams at school."

to have a casual conversation, often involving gossip

"She nattered on the phone for hours."

"My aunt loves to natter on the phone with her friends for hours about absolutely nothing important or interesting to anyone else."

to talk a lot about unimportant things and in a way that may seem foolish

"The child prattled on about his toys."

"The toddler continued to prattle on about his day at the park without noticing that his mother was not really listening to every word he said."

to use one's voice to express a particular feeling or thought

"Please speak more clearly."

"She was too nervous to speak in front of the large audience even though she had prepared her speech thoroughly."

to tell someone about the feelings or ideas that we have

"Let's talk about your future plans."

"The therapist encouraged her patient to talk openly about his feelings without fear of being judged or criticized."

to use words and give someone information

"Tell me the truth please."

"Please tell me the truth about what happened last night because I deserve to know the facts."

to use words and our voice to show what we are thinking or feeling

"Say hello to your teacher."

"What did the teacher say about the homework assignment due tomorrow morning in class."

to exchange information, news, ideas, etc. with someone

"We communicate through email and phone."

"Effective managers know how to communicate clearly with their employees to avoid misunderstandings and improve productivity."

to speak directly to a specific person or group

"She will address the crowd."

"The president will address the nation tonight to discuss the pressing economic issues facing the country."

to clearly communicate an idea, plan, etc.

"Get your point across clearly."

"The teacher struggled to get the difficult concept across to her students so she tried a different approach."

to provide a spoken or written description of an event, story, etc.

"He will narrate the story."

"The documentary will narrate the harrowing journey of the refugees."

to ask someone questions about a particular topic on the TV, radio, or for a newspaper

"I will interview her."

"The journalist will interview the celebrity about her upcoming movie premiere."

to talk in a brief and friendly way to someone, usually about unimportant things

"We will chat later."

"It's nice to just chat with old friends and catch up on each other's lives over coffee."

to talk quickly and a lot about unimportant and idiotic things

"The children chatter during lunch break."

"The group of excited children would not stop chattering during the entire bus ride to the museum which annoyed the driver greatly."

to engage in casual or idle conversation

"Vendors chaffer with customers at markets."

"The farmer and the customer chaffered over the price of the apples for several minutes before agreeing on a fair amount."