What is a speech: definition, characteristics and examples
The word “speech” (in Spanish, discurso) is used for two related things: the text someone delivers before an audience (the graduation speech, the political speech) and, in linguistics, any real use of language in a context (a conversation, an advertisement, a debate). On this page we explain both senses and the characteristics they share.
Definition of speech
In its most general sense, a speech is a unit of language in use: a set of utterances produced by someone, for someone, in a concrete situation and with an intention. That definition covers everything from a one-minute toast to a parliamentary debate, and also written texts when they are studied as acts of communication: an editorial, an advertisement, or a social media post.
In the narrower and better-known sense, a speech is the formal spoken address before an audience: someone takes the floor with a purpose — to inform, to persuade, to move, to thank — and sustains an organized message for several minutes. That is the sense of most pages on this site, which are devoted to occasion speeches.
Characteristics of a speech
- Intentionality: every speech seeks an effect on its receiver: that they believe something, feel something, or do something.
- Context: the same text means different things depending on who says it, where, and when. Context does not decorate the speech: it is part of its meaning.
- Structure: speeches are organized into recognizable parts (opening, body, closing) that help the receiver follow the message.
- Interaction: even when only one person speaks, the speech is built with an audience in mind that listens, reacts and judges.
- Coherence and cohesion: ideas are arranged with a logic (coherence) and linked with connectors, repetitions and references (cohesion).
Speech, text and public speaking: not the same thing
The text is the verbal product itself, the sequence of words, and it can be studied on paper. The speech is that text placed in a situation: it includes the speaker, the audience, the moment and the intention. That is why two people can read the same text and produce very different speeches. Public speaking (oratory), in contrast, is the art or technique of speaking in public effectively: it is a skill, not a product. You could say that public speaking is the craft, the text is the script, and the speech is the whole performance.
Examples of speech in everyday life
Although it sounds like a ceremonial word, we produce and receive speeches every day: a teacher’s explanation in class, a product presentation, the Sunday sermon, a coach’s talk at halftime, a lawyer’s closing argument, a president’s New Year message. Studying speech is studying how language organizes social life.
Formal and informal speeches
Between the presidential address and the toast among friends there is a whole range of formality, and the same person moves along it in a single day: they present a report at work in the morning (formal, documented, measured), tell a story at lunch (informal, spontaneous, full of gestures), and perhaps say a few words at a family dinner. What changes is not the nature of the speech but the contract with the audience: how much preparation is expected, how much emotion is allowed, and how much room there is to improvise. Recognizing which register a situation calls for is the first practical skill of any speaker.
Speech as an object of study
Since the mid-twentieth century, linguistics and the social sciences have studied discourse systematically: how power is built into words, how the media present the news, or how an everyday conversation maintains social relationships. That discipline is discourse analysis, to which we devote a complete guide.
Frequently asked questions
What is the definition of a speech in one sentence?
A speech is the use of language in a real situation of communication, with a speaker, a receiver, a context and a definite intention.
Is a speech always spoken?
No. The classic occasion speech is oral, but in linguistics written texts (press, advertising, literature) are also analyzed as discourse, because they equally communicate within a context and with an intention.
What is the difference between a speech and a dissertation?
A dissertation is a type of academic, reasoned speech, generally long, in which a topic is examined in depth. Any speech can be brief and emotional; a dissertation requires argumentation and usually takes place in university settings.
Who studies speech and discourse?
Mainly linguistics (through discourse analysis), but also communication studies, sociology, social psychology, political science and literary studies.
Keep learning
Continue with the types of speech, learn to recognize their parts in speech structure, or move on to practice with the speeches by occasion.