difference between oral and written speech

• Key Differences

Know the Differences & Comparisons

Difference Between Oral Communication and Written Communication

Written Communication , on the other hand, is a formal means of communication, wherein message is carefully drafted and formulated in written form. It is kept as a source of reference or legal record. In this article, we’ve presented all the important differences between oral and written communication in tabular form.

Content: Oral Communication Vs Written Communication

Comparison chart.

Definition of Oral Communication

Oral Communication is the process of conveying or receiving messages with the use of spoken words. This mode of communication is highly used across the world because of rapid transmission of information and prompt reply.

Oral communication can either be in the form of direct conversation between two or more persons like face to face communication, lectures, meetings, seminars, group discussion, conferences, etc. or indirect conversation, i.e. the form of communication in which a medium is used for interchange of information like telephonic conversation, video call, voice call, etc.

The best thing about this mode of communication is that the parties to communication, i.e. sender or receiver, can notice nonverbal cues like the body language, facial expression, tone of voice and pitch, etc. This makes the communication between the parties more effective. However, this mode is backed with some limitation like the words once spoken can never be taken back.

Video: Oral Communication

Definition of Written Communication

The communication in which the message is transmitted in written or printed form is known as Written Communication. It is the most reliable mode of communication, and it is highly preferred in the business world because of its formal and sophisticated nature. The various channels of written communication are letters, e-mails, journals, magazines, newspapers, text messages, reports, etc. There are a number of advantages of written communication which are as under:

• Referring the message in the future will be easy.
• Before transmitting the message, one can revise or rewrite it in an organised way.
• The chances of misinterpretation of message are very less because the words are carefully chosen.
• The communication is planned.
• Legal evidence is available due to the safekeeping of records.

But as we all know that everything has two aspects, same is the case with written communication as the communication is a time consuming one. Moreover, the sender will never know that the receiver has read the message or not. The sender has to wait for the responses of the receiver. A lot of paperwork is there, in this mode of communication.

Video: Written Communication

Key Differences Between Oral Communication and Written Communication

The following are the major differences between oral communication and written communication:

• The type of communication in which the sender transmits information to the receiver through verbally speaking the message. The communication mode, which uses written or printed text for exchanging the information is known as Written Communication.
• The pre-condition in written communication is that the participants must be literate whereas there is no such condition in case of oral communication.
• Proper records are there in Written Communication, which is just opposite in the case of Oral Communication.
• Oral Communication is faster than Written Communication.
• The words once uttered cannot be reversed in the case of Oral Communication. On the other hand, editing of the original message is possible in Written Communication.
• Misinterpretation of the message is possible in Oral Communication but not in Written Communication.
• In oral communication, instant feedback is received from the recipient which is not possible in Written Communication.

Video: Oral Vs Written Communication

Oral Communication is an informal one which is normally used in personal conversations, group talks, etc. Written Communication is formal communication, which is used in schools, colleges, business world, etc. Choosing between the two communication mode is a tough task because both are good at their places. People normally use the oral mode of communication because it is convenient and less time-consuming. However, people normally believe in the written text more than what they hear that is why written communication is considered as the reliable method of communication.

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Module 7: Refining your Speech

Oral versus written style, learning objectives.

Explain the difference between oral and written style.

In a public speaking class, you will likely be asked to turn in an outline rather than a manuscript because speeches should not be considered oral presentations of a written text.

It takes a lot of practice to make reading from a teleprompter (or a manuscript) sound natural. It takes even more practice to write in a style that sounds like speech.

Although we’ve seen many speeches delivered from a teleprompter, it is important to remember that those speeches are usually written by professional speechwriters, who are familiar with the differences between written and spoken communication. For newer speakers who are writing their own speeches, identifying the differences between oral and written style is an important key to a successful speech.

Oral communication is characterized by a higher level of immediacy and a lower level of retention than written communication; therefore, it’s important to consider the following adaptations between oral and written style.

Personal Pronouns

• Example: In her acceptance speech for the 2015 Goldman Environmental Prize, activist Berta Cáceres says “¡Despertemos¡ ¡Despertemos Humanidad¡ Ya no hay tiempo. . . . El Río Gualcarque nos ha llamado, así como los demás que están seriamente amenazados. Debemos acudir.” (Let us wake up! Let us wake up, humanity! There is no time. . . . The Gualcarque River has called upon us, as have other gravely threatened rivers. We must answer their call.)
• Written Style: Infrequent use of personal pronouns, most commonly uses third person such as one , they , and he/she/they .

Grammar and Sentence Structure

• Example: Ashton Applewhite begins her TED talk “Let’s End Ageism” with a series of questions and short sentences, many starting with and : “What’s one thing that every person in this room is going to become? Older. And most of us are scared stiff at the prospect. How does that word make you feel? I used to feel the same way. What was I most worried about? Ending up drooling in some grim institutional hallway. And then I learned that only four percent of older Americans are living in nursing homes, and the percentage is dropping. What else was I worried about? Dementia. Turns out that most of us can think just fine to the end. Dementia rates are dropping, too. The real epidemic is anxiety over memory loss.” [1]
• Example: “In many modern nations, however, industrialization contributed to the diminished social standing of the elderly. Today wealth, power, and prestige are also held by those in younger age brackets. The average age of corporate executives was fifty-nine years old in 1980. In 2008, the average age had lowered to fifty-four years old (Stuart 2008). Some older members of the workforce felt threatened by this trend and grew concerned that younger employees in higher level positions would push them out of the job market. Rapid advancements in technology and media have required new skill sets that older members of the workforce are less likely to have.” [2]

Repetition is a great strategy in speaking . . .

• Example: Winston Churchill, speech to the House of Commons, June 4, 1940: “We shall go on to the end, we shall fight in France, we shall fight on the seas and oceans, we shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air, we shall defend our Island, whatever the cost may be, we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender.” [3]

. . . but boring in writing.

• Where Churchill’s speech uses the verb fight  seven times, this excerpt about the Battle of Britain from a biography of Churchill uses a variety of words and formulations to describing the fighting. “The Luftwaffe’s [German Air Force’s] first object was to destroy the RAF’s [the British Royal Air Force’s] southern airfields. Had this been accomplished there is no doubt that a seaborne invasion would have been launched with a good prospect of establishing a bridgehead in Kent or Sussex. After that the outlook for Britain’s survival would have been bleak. But the RAF successfully defended its airfields and inflicted very heavy casualties on the German formations, in a ratio of three to one. Moreover, the German aircrews were mostly killed or captured whereas British crews parachuted to safety. Throughout July and August the advantage moved steadily to Britain, and more aircraft and crews were added each week to lengthen the odds against Germany. By mid-September, the Battle of Britain was won.” [4]

Colloquialisms and Tone

• Example: Simon Sinek, “How Great Leaders Inspire Action,” said, “As we said before, the recipe for success is money and the right people and the right market conditions. You should have success then. Look at TiVo. From the time TiVo came out about eight or nine years ago to this current day, they are the single highest-quality product on the market, hands down, there is no dispute. They were extremely well-funded. Market conditions were fantastic. I mean, we use TiVo as verb. I TiVo stuff on my piece-of-junk Time Warner DVR all the time.” [5]
• From an academic article about TiVo: “Our analysis of the longitudinal data on TiVo and the TV industry ecosystem generated three themes that we develop in this paper. First, a disruptor confronts three coopetitive tensions—intertemporal, dyadic, and multilateral. Second, the disruptor continually adjusts its strategy to address these coopetitive tensions as they arise. Third, as the disruptor’s innovation and relational positioning within the changing ecosystem coevolve, the disruptor has greater latitude to frame its innovation as sustaining the operations of ecosystem members. Overall, these themes contribute to an understanding of strategy as process.” [6]
• Note how Sinek, in the example above, uses everyday words in simple sentences. The thesis of his speech is stated equally simply: “People don’t buy what you do; they buy why you do it.”
• The academic article cited above uses a number of words most non-expert readers would have to look up to understand. Coopetitive  is a made-up word combining cooperative and competition. Intertemporal describes a relationship between past, present, and future events. Dyadic  describes the interaction between two things. And multilateral  means three or more parties are involved. In a speech—unless it’s a speech to experts—a sentence containing all four of these words will cruise over the heads of most audience members.
• https://www.ted.com/talks/ashton_applewhite_let_s_end_ageism ↵
• https://courses.lumenlearning.com/wm-introductiontosociology/chapter/ageism-and-abuse/ ↵
• https://winstonchurchill.org/resources/speeches/1940-the-finest-hour/we-shall-fight-on-the-beaches/ ↵
• Johnson, Paul.  Churchill . United Kingdom, Penguin, 2010, 118. ↵
• https://www.ted.com/talks/simon_sinek_how_great_leaders_inspire_action ↵
• Ansari, Shahzad, Raghu Garud, and Arun Kumaraswamy. "The disruptor's dilemma: TiVo and the US television ecosystem." Strategic Management Journal 37.9 (2016): 1829–53, 1830. ↵
• Teleprompter. Authored by : Paolo Margari. Located at : https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Teleprompter_in_use.jpg . License : CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
• Pillars. Authored by : StockSnap. Located at : https://pixabay.com/photos/pillars-shadows-architecture-924982/ . License : Other . License Terms : Pixabay License
• Oral vs. Written Style. Authored by : Anne Fleischer with Lumen Learning. License : CC BY: Attribution

Oral vs Written Communication Skills | Importance & Examples

Kristen earned a Bachelor of Arts in Communication (cum laude) and certification in SEO and digital advertising. She has several years of academic writing with industry experience as a tutor, business writer, manager at a Fortune 100 company, and news producer. She's taught English, business, education, and art.

Kat has a Master of Science in Organizational Leadership and Management and teaches Business courses.

Why are oral and written communication skills important?

Both oral communication and written communication skills are important to ensure the quality of the information. Both should be accurate and efficiently conveyed, as well as ensuring clarity of the content.

What are some examples of oral and written communication?

Some examples of oral communication include activities that require communication to be vocal, such as persuading people in speeches and sharing ideas on the radio. Written communication includes forms of communication that must be written, such as an email or a handwritten letter.

Table of Contents

What are oral and written communication skills, what is the difference between oral communication and written communication, importance of verbal and written communication, lesson summary.

Communication is a broad field that covers many different means of spreading and transferring messages. There are many forms of communication that focus on a specific means or aspect of communication. Two common forms that are often compared are oral communication and written communication.

Oral communication refers to the communication that takes place by speaking. This includes basic conversations, as well as speeches and meetings. Written communication refers to the type of communication that uses the written word. This can be typed on an electronic device, such as an email on a computer, or handwritten, such as a note or a letter. Both oral communication and written communication are used on a daily basis. While both may convey the same messages, they may be used for different purposes.

Written Communication Skills Examples

There are many forms of written communication. Some of the most common forms include:

• Text messages
• Cards and letters

Written communication skills involve being able to read and write, as well as edit information for clarity. It is also important for the writer to understand how to use proper grammar and punctuation for credibility. Written communication may also make use of specific styles, such as Associated Press, or AP style, which is commonly used in newspapers and magazines.

Oral Communication Skills Examples

Oral communication skills can also be used for many different purposes. Some common examples of oral communication include:

• Sharing ideas
• Communicating thoughts
• Exchanging information
• Giving orders
• Persuading people

Oral communication skills rely on the ability to articulate works in an effective manner. Taking time to practice and receive feedback on general communication skills can help to improve oral communication skills. Things such as presentations and engaging in meetings or class discussions can also help to improve these skills.

Oral communication skills are common in the media where communication is typically distributed vocally. Radio, for example, relies heavily on the use of oral communication since speaking is the means of broadcasting via radio. Nonverbal skills may also come into play with oral communication where the speaker can be seen, such as in speeches or interviews. Nonverbal skills include tone, body language, and visual cues. These skills can be helpful in generating interest in the topic that is covered in a speech, as compared to simply reading transcripts of the speech.

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• 0:02 What Exactly Is Oral…
• 0:29 Written Communication
• 0:55 Differences: Oral and…
• 2:20 Lesson Summary

The main difference between oral communication and written communication is the way in which the message is distributed. Written communication is also generally more formal than oral communication. Still, there are other factors that differentiate the two types of communication . These include the preciseness of the message, audience engagement, and retention of the information.

The preciseness of the message differs in both written and oral communication. Communication that is written out and sent typically cannot be edited but speaking to an audience provides flexibility. Oral communication allows the speaker to make changes and go back to the main points if they don't respond as the speaker expected. The speaker can determine how the audience is reacting to the message being conveyed and make changes as they go along. On the other hand, written communication also allows the writer to make edits before sending out their message. While using oral communication occurs on the spot and cannot be edited, written communication allows the writer to first draft their idea and have an editor look over it before it is presented to the public.

Audience engagement is another factor that differs between the two. Typically, an audience is more engaged if someone is speaking as this makes use of nonverbal factors, like gestures. Speaking may also provide an opportunity for those in the audience to make suggestions or comments. Written communication doesn't allow for as much engagement. Though some means of written communication, such as blogs or emails, may provide a way for users to engage.

Retention of information is an important factor to consider since it varies between both oral and written communication. Generally, people remember more of what they hear than what they read. Those who read information only retain 10% of the content, while those who hear the information retain 20%. This means oral communication is overall more effective when the purpose is to inform.

Both written communication and oral communication are important and should aim to be accurate. They should be efficient and include good record-keeping if necessary. When it comes to branding, both oral and written communication are important as they can impact whether the audience is interested and whether a company grows.

Written communication is important to provide instructions or important details, such as in product marketing. Oral communication is important for providing clear expression, as well as succinct conversation when necessary. For example, a job description should be written clearly, however, as the job is offered to a candidate, oral communication is important to help clarify the role and responsibilities, as well as to answer any other questions the job candidate might have.

Communication comes in many forms. Oral communication and written communication are two forms that are often compared. Oral communication is the type of communication that takes place through speaking, such as conversations, speeches, and meetings. Written communication is the type of communication that uses the written word., such as emails and letters. Oral communication skills are common in the media, especially radio as it relies heavily on oral communication.

The main difference between oral communication and written communication is the way in which the message is distributed. Other factors that differentiate these types of communication include the preciseness of the message, audience engagement, and retention of the information. Oral communication skills are generally more helpful to generate interest from the audience since it involves nonverbal gestures, as compared to simply reading a transcript of the speech. Speaking to an audience also allows the speaker to make changes and go back to the main points if they don't respond as the speaker expected. In general, people typically remember more of what they hear than what they read, retaining 10% of information that is read and 20% of information that is heard.

Video Transcript

What exactly is oral communication.

There are so many ways we engage in oral communication. In fact, by you watching this video, I am communicating orally with you.

Oral communication is really just talking to others. Through oral communication, you can:

• Share ideas
• Communicate thoughts
• Exchange information
• Give orders
• Persuade people

So, there are many things we can accomplish through oral communication. The same applies to written communication. It's pretty effective as well but in a different way.

So, What Is Written Communication, Then?

Obviously, from its name, written communication means communicating to others through the written word.

This can be done in many ways:

• Text messaging

And the list goes on and on. Now, you'd think that the major differences between oral and written communication would be as obvious, but there are several dissimilarities we will learn next.

Differences: Oral and Written Communication

Suffice it to say, in business, college and everyday life, we need to have both oral and written communication to get what we need to get done, well, done! So, to know which works best for different situations, let's figure out the major differences:

• Preciseness of the message
• Audience engagement
• Retention of the information

Written communication is precise because words are chosen by the writer with great care. Oral communication can be more effective because it involves carefully chosen words along with non-verbal gestures, movements, tone changes and visual cues that keep the audience captivated.

The written word is more organized, more detailed and is presented in a logical order. Speaking before an audience allows one to use less formal language, retract statements and re-generate interest if the audience loses attentiveness.

Writers have less control over the audience or reader's attention because he cannot go back and stress a point that the reader may have missed. Once stated, a speaker can go back to important points if he feels the audience did not respond as expected.

A book writer knows that people remember only about 10% of what they read. A speaker is confident that people remember 20% of what they hear. So, we can safely say that there are major differences between oral and written communication.

To sum it up, oral communication is really just talking to others. Conversely, written communication means communicating to others through the written word.

There are a few major differences between the two forms of communication. Preciseness of the message is stronger in the written word.

In contrast, audience engagement is much easier to direct and re-direct in oral communication. Speakers can use body language and tone to get the audience's attention. And people remember more of what they hear. This does not mean one is better than the other; it really depends on the message and the purpose.

Learning Outcomes

When you're through watching the video, you should have the knowledge to:

• Explain what oral communication is
• Describe written communication
• Differentiate between oral and written communication

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Oral Language and Written Language Are Not the Same Things: Why the Distinction Really Matters When Teaching Literacy to English Learners

Among the most wondrous things about being human is our ability to use language. We’re not the only beings that communicate, of course, but Homo sapiens use human language, which as the evolutionary biologist Mark Pagel has written,

“…is distinct from all other known animal forms of communication in being compositional . Human language allows speakers to express thoughts in sentences comprising subjects, verbs and objects… Human language is also referential , meaning speakers use it to exchange specific information with each other about people or objects and their locations or actions.” (Pagel, 2017, p. 1; emphases in original)

This is true about human language whether it’s oral or written. But there are key differences between oral and written language that have important implications for teaching students to read and write.

These differences are important for all students; they are particularly important for English learners , students who are learning to read and write in English as they simultaneously learn to speak and understand it.

(To be clear, I am referring to English learners in English medium instruction, which is the type of program in which the large majority of English learners are educated in the US. Bilingual education is preferable for many reasons, but most English learners do not have the benefit of a bilingual program. There should be no inference taken that I favor English immersion instruction for these students.)

Language through Speech or Print

Let’s begin with oral language, or more precisely, human speech. Speech is not language itself but how language is conveyed orally. It’s the spoken expression of language.

As humans, we don’t spend any time worrying about the distinction between speech and oral language. When someone is speaking in a language we understand, we focus on what they are trying to communicate. 

Young children communicating

Young children know intuitively that speech communicates meaning, and they seek to understand that meaning.  Not so with print.

The History of Human Speech & Language

Aspects of human speech and language have been around for far longer than writing, perhaps as much as half a million years or more longer (Evans, 2015; King, 2013). Humans are wired to learn to speak and to understand spoken speech, just as birds are wired to fly, fish to swim, and so forth.

Given an environment where people are talking, and assuming no brain injury or congenital disability, human babies will learn to speak as they enter toddlerhood. Even before, they will use gestures and signals to communicate, along with verbalizations. There is a communicative imperative with which each of us is born, injuries or disabilities aside.

Famed developmental psychologist T.G.R. Bower observed that it’s obvious we “have some biological predispositions toward speech, … even at birth. Neonates are more attentive to speech than to any other stimulus” (p. 228).

The Emergence of the Written Language

Written language is different. Rather than dating back to the time of the appearance of modern humans around 300,000 years ago, written language first appeared in Sumeria a short 5,000 years ago. The written language was cuneiform, sometimes known as hieroglyphics, which is what the Egyptians used. Cuneiform, or hieroglyphics, represented concepts (picture below).

Cuneiform (left) and hieroglyphics represented concepts

 A different type of written language emerged somewhat later, one in which speech sounds were represented by letters. This phonetic writing system—”phoenetic” from the Greek phonein —”to speak clearly”—was courtesy of the Phoenicians (Mark, 2011) (see pictures below).

Examples above of phonetic writing

Writing systems—“the physical manifestation of a spoken language” (Mark, 2011)—are a relatively recent arrival in human history. They are cultural inventions rather than part of human evolution. We don’t intuitively understand that print represents sounds that then carry meaning. We are certainly not born with a literacy imperative.

There are societies without written language and situations with nonliterate environments where there are nonliterate children and adults. In contrast, human speech and oral language is universal; there are no known alingual societies (Bright, 2022).

We take written language for granted because it is so ubiquitous in our world, but we should not underestimate the challenge of helping all individuals acquire literacy. We can’t assume that literacy will somehow happen by itself, even if we were to flood every last home, school, and community with mountains of books.

Book flooding would be a welcome development. But alone it would not accomplish universal literacy.

Literacy—the ability to read the printed text and produce written language—needs to be taught.

Literacy is not acquired “naturally” as is oral language, although there are certainly instances of children who appear to learn to read naturally, by themselves, with virtually no human interaction. These are the exceptions; different studies provide estimates ranging from one to seven percent of children. But even here some amount of instruction or help, often at the instigation of the child, is probably necessary for so-called “precocious” or “early” readers to understand comprehensively how speech sounds are represented in print (Olson, Evans, & Keckler, 2006).

The “Speech to Print” Connection: How to Teach All Children to be Literate

To become literate, all students need to learn how speech sounds are represented in print. There is simply no getting around this. The “speech to print” connection (Moats, 2020) it the gateway to literacy.

Children vary enormously in how much help or instruction they need. Some need very little; others need a great deal; the majority are somewhere in between. This range of difficulties students experience in learning to read is common across all languages (Fletcher et al., 2019). Moreover, full literacy requires the ability to process print—written language—very quickly, efficiently, and automatically, what the neuroscientist Mark Seidenberg calls “language at the speed of sight” (Seidenberg, 2017).

Regardless of the range of difficulties students encounter, students who are proficient in the language they are learning to read enjoy advantages: The sounds of the language are familiar and the words are already meaningful, though as noted, it’s more straightforward for some than for others.

In general, students who know the oral language learn letters, corresponding sounds, and how to use phonics and decoding skills to read words. They can typically then use their knowledge of the words they are learning to read (e.g., see, run, I, can) to help them recognize words, confirm their accuracy (“does that word make sense there?”), and gain useful practice in connecting speech to print with a steadily increasing repertoire of words and text.

Language Development for English Learners

English learners need to learn exactly the same thing as English speakers in order to learn to read in English— how the speech sounds of English are represented in print .

But the task for English learners is more challenging, and they need an additional and critical area of support: English language development that teaches them unfamiliar sounds of English and the meanings of words and text they are learning to read (Goldenberg, 2020).

Without this support, at best they can learn to read by rote. But even this is more challenging, since understanding the words you are reading makes it easier to read and recognize them. As students go up the grades, not understanding words they are reading becomes an ever-increasing barrier to literacy development and to academic and language development generally.

Beyond beginning and early literacy, English learners will need continued support in additional aspects of English language and literacy development, e.g., advanced word recognition skills, morphology, syntax, discourse and pragmatic skills and understandings, and increasing fluency in using these all to navigate written language successfully. Background knowledge also becomes increasingly important for both oral and written language competence as students progress through school.

There are other differences between oral and written language, of course, differences in style, construction, and register, among others. But from the standpoint of learning to become literate, the most fundamental difference has to do with how spoken language and written language are acquired.

Particularly in the case of a first language, acquisition is generally natural and effortless. Learning written language, particularly one you are simultaneously learning to speak and understand, is not natural and rarely effortless. For both English speakers and English learners, the foundational skills that connect speech to print (i.e., phonological awareness, letters and sounds, phonics, decoding, basic spelling patterns, and fluency with all) are essential—necessary but not sufficient. A great deal more is needed for full literacy, but being without solid foundational skills is like living in a building without a solid foundation—possible but risky.

Special thanks to David Burns for his helpful feedback on a previous version.

Bower, T.G.R. (1979). Human development. San Francisco: W.H. Freeman.

Bright, W. (2022). What’s the difference between speech and writing? Linguistic Society of America . https://www.linguisticsociety.org/resource/whats-difference-between-speech-and-writing

Evans, V. (2015, Feb. 19) How Old Is Language? Psychology Today. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/language-in-the-mind/201502/how-old-is-language

Fletcher, J., Lyon, G., Fuchs, L., & Barnes, M.. (2019). Learning disabilities: From identification to intervention (2 nd ed.) New York: Guilford.

Goldenberg, C.  (2020). Reading wars, reading science, and English Learners. Reading Research Quarterly, 55 (S1), S131–S144. https://ila.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/rrq.340

King, B. (2013, Sept. 5) When Did Human Speech Evolve? National Public Radio. https://www.npr.org/sections/13.7/2013/09/05/219236801/when-did-human-speech-evolve

Mark, J. (2011). Writing. World History Encyclopedia.   http://www.ancient.eu/writing/

Moats, L. (2020). Speech to print: Language essentials for teachers (3 rd ed). Baltimore, Md.: Paul H. Brookes.

Olson, L., Evans, J., & Keckler, W. (2006). Precocious readers: Past, present, and future. Journal for the Education of the Gifted, 30(2), 205–235.

Pagel, M. (2017). Q&A: What is human language, when did it evolve and why should we care?. BMC Biol 15 , 64 https://doi.org/10.1186/s12915-017-0405-3 .

Seidenberg, M. (2017). Language at the speed of sight. New York: Basic Books.

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Spoken vs. Written Language

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Differences Between Oral and Written Language

You may have noticed that words and sentences that are spoken aloud can come across quite differently from words that you read to yourself. In a public speaking context, the difference between spoken and written language can be even more pronounced. To help you craft better language for your speeches, consider these three key differences between oral and written language:

Oral language is more adaptive . Writers seldom know exactly who will read their words or in what context. The best they can do is to take educated guesses and make language choices accordingly. When you speak before a live audience, however, you can get immediate feedback, which is virtually impossible for a writer. Thus, you can observe your audience members during your presentation, interact with them, and respond to the way they are receiving your message. Because a speech is a live, physical interaction that generates instantaneous audience feedback, you can adapt to the situation, such as by extending or simplifying an explanation if listeners seem confused or by choosing clearer or simpler language.

Oral language tends to be less formal . Because writers have the luxury of getting their words down on paper (or on screen) and then going back to make changes, they typically use precise word choice and follow the formal rules of syntax and grammar. This careful use of language aligns well with most readers’ expectations. In most speech situations, however, language choice tends toward a somewhat less formal style. Because listeners lack the chance to go back and reread your words, you will want to use shorter and less complicated sentences. (Of course, certain speech situation s— such as political setting s— require elevated sentence structure and word choice.) In addition, effective oral language is often simpler and less technically precise than written language is. Thus, consider incorporating appropriate colloquialisms, a conversational tone, and even sentence fragments into your speeches.

Oral language incorporates repetition . Most writing teachers and coaches advise their students to avoid repeating themselves or being redundant by covering the same ground more than once. But in speaking situations, repetition can be an especially effective tool because your listeners can’t go back and revisit your points: your words are there and then suddenly are gone. Because most audience members don’t take notes (especially outside a classroom setting), there is nothing for listeners to rely on except their own memory of your words. You can help your listeners remember your message by intentionally repeating key words and phrases throughout your presentation. If they hear certain words often enough, they will remember them.

Difference Between | Descriptive Analysis and Comparisons

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Key Difference: Oral and written communications are both major forms of communication. Communicating by word of mouth is termed as oral communication. Written communication involves writing/drawing symbols in order to communicate.

One can understand oral communication simply as a verbally spoken conversation. It is the routine words and sentences that we use in conveying our feelings, desires, emotions, etc. to the people around us. Oral communication as a term may refer to two individuals participating in a conversation, such as a face-to-face chat, discussion, etc. Or, it could mean a group of people talking amongst themselves, like a meeting, a convention, etc. Oral communication may also mean an individual communicating to a large audience, as it happens in a speech, or a public presentation. Apart from voicing out one’s feelings and emotions, oral communication is also largely influenced by body language. Appearing trivial in nature, things such as body gait, posture, eye contact, etc. can influence an oral conversation as much as speaking the right words in the right manner does.

Written communication is considered as the preferred form of communication, when it comes to government undertakings, official work, formal agreements, etc. This is because written communication is more suitable to be effectively implemented in such scenarios, than oral communication. For instance, written communication provides the facility of recording any piece of communication, as it is always in written form, while oral communication cannot. In this day and age, oral communication can also be recorded using the various means of technology, but oral communication is not always recorded. Whereas, written communication is always in a recorded form. This is the reason why written communication holds an edge over oral communication in legal and formal circumstances. Written communication not only enables a person to relive and remember a conversation exactly, but also to present it as evidence, in case he/she is in a spot of bother.

However, the fact which remains is that both oral and written forms of communication are indispensable to the human society in its day to day life.

Comparison between Oral and Written Communication:

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Chapter Twelve – Language Use

Oral versus written language.

Clemsonunivlibrary –  group meeting  – CC BY-NC 2.0.

When we use the word “language,” we are referring to the words you choose to use in your speech—so by definition, our focus is on spoken language. Spoken language has always existed prior to written language. Wrench, McCroskey, and Richmond suggested that if you think about the human history of language as a twelve-inch ruler, written language or recorded language has only existed for the “last quarter of an inch” [1] . Furthermore, of the more than six thousand languages that are spoken around the world today, only a minority of them actually use a written alphabet [2] . To help us understand the importance of language, we will first look at the basic functions of language and then delve into the differences between oral and written language.

Basic Functions of Language

Language is any formal system of gestures, signs, sounds, and symbols used or conceived as a means of communicating thought. As mentioned above, there are over six thousand language schemes currently in use around the world. The language spoken by the greatest number of people on the planet is Mandarin; other widely spoken languages are English, Spanish, and Arabic [3] . Language is ultimately important because it is the primary means through which humans have the ability to communicate and interact with one another. Some linguists go so far as to suggest that the acquisition of language skills is the primary advancement that enabled our prehistoric ancestors to flourish and succeed over other hominid species [4] .

In today’s world, effective use of language helps us in our interpersonal relationships at home and at work. Using language effectively also will improve your ability to be an effective public speaker. Because language is an important aspect of public speaking that many students don’t spend enough time developing, we encourage you to take advantage of this chapter.

One of the first components necessary for understanding language is to understand how we assign meaning to words. Words consist of sounds (oral) and shapes (written) that have agreed-upon meanings based in concepts, ideas, and memories. When we write the word “blue,” we may be referring to a portion of the visual spectrum dominated by energy with a wavelength of roughly 440–490 nanometers. You could also say that the color in question is an equal mixture of both red and green light. While both of these are technically correct ways to interpret the word “blue,” we’re pretty sure that neither of these definitions is how you thought about the word. When hearing the word “blue,” you may have thought of your favorite color, the color of the sky on a spring day, or the color of a really ugly car you saw in the parking lot. When people think about language, there are two different types of meanings that people must be aware of: denotative and connotative.

Denotative Meaning

The denotative meaning is the specific meaning associated with a word. We sometimes refer to denotative meanings as dictionary definitions. The definitions provided above for the word “blue” are examples of definitions that might be found in a dictionary. The first dictionary was written by Robert Cawdry in 1604 and was called Table Alphabeticall . This dictionary of the English language consisted of three thousand commonly spoken English words. Today, the  Oxford English Dictionary contains more than 200,000 words [6] .

Connotative Meaning

 The connotative meaning is the idea suggested by or associated with a word. In addition to the examples above, the word “blue” can evoke many other ideas:

• State of depression (feeling blue)
• Indication of winning (a blue ribbon)
• Side during the Civil War (blues vs. grays)
• Sudden event (out of the blue)

We also associate the color blue with the sky and the ocean. Maybe your school’s colors or those of your archrival include blue. There are also various forms of blue: aquamarine, baby blue, navy blue, royal blue, and so on.

Some miscommunication can occur over denotative meanings of words. For example, a flyer for a tennis center open house expressed the goal of introducing children to the game of tennis. At the bottom of the flyer, people were encouraged to bring their own racquets if they had them but that “a limited number of racquets will be available.” It turned out that the denotative meaning of the final phrase was interpreted in multiple ways: some parents attending the event perceived it to mean that loaner racquets would be available for use during the open house event, but the people running the open house intended it to mean that parents could purchase racquets onsite. The confusion over denotative meaning probably hurt the tennis center, as some parents left the event feeling they had been misled by the flyer.

Although denotatively based misunderstanding such as this one do happen, the majority of communication problems involving language occur because of differing connotative meanings. You may be trying to persuade your audience to support public funding for a new professional football stadium in your city, but if mentioning the team’s or owner’s name creates negative connotations in the minds of audience members, you will not be very persuasive. The potential for misunderstanding based in connotative meaning is an additional reason why audience analysis, discussed earlier in this book, is critically important. By conducting effective audience analysis, you can know in advance how your audience might respond to the connotations of the words and ideas you present. Connotative meanings can not only differ between individuals interacting at the same time but also differ greatly across time periods and cultures. Ultimately, speakers should attempt to have a working knowledge of how their audiences could potentially interpret words and ideas to minimize the chance of miscommunication.

Twelve Ways Oral and Written Language Differ

A second important aspect to understand about language is that oral language (used in public speaking) and written language (used for texts) does not function the same way. Try a brief experiment. Take a textbook, maybe even this one, and read it out loud. When the text is read aloud, does it sound conversational? Probably not. Public speaking, on the other hand, should sound like a conversation. McCroskey, Wrench, and Richmond highlighted the following twelve differences that exist between oral and written language:

• Oral language has a smaller variety of words.
• Oral language has words with fewer syllables.
• Oral language has shorter sentences.
• Oral language has more self-reference words ( I ,  me ,  mine ).
• Oral language has fewer quantifying terms or precise numerical words.
• Oral language has more pseudo-quantifying terms ( many ,  few ,  some ).
• Oral language has more extreme and superlative words ( none ,  all ,  every ,  always ,  never ).
• Oral language has more qualifying statements (clauses beginning with  unless  and  except ).
• Oral language has more repetition of words and syllables.
• Oral language uses more contractions.
• Oral language has more interjections (“Wow!,” “Really?,” “No!,” “You’re kidding!”).
• Oral language has more colloquial and nonstandard words (McCroskey, et al., 2003).

These differences exist primarily because people listen to and read information differently. First, when you read information, if you don’t grasp content the first time, you have the ability to reread a section. When we are listening to information, we do not have the ability to “rewind” life and relisten to the information. Second, when you read information, if you do not understand a concept, you can look up the concept in a dictionary or online and gain the knowledge easily. However, we do not always have the ability to walk around with the Internet and look up concepts we don’t understand. Therefore, oral communication should be simple enough to be easily understood in the moment by a specific audience, without additional study or information.

Using Language Effectively

Kimba Howard –  megaphone  – CC BY 2.0.

When considering how to use language effectively in your speech, consider the degree to which the language is appropriate, vivid, inclusive, and familiar. The next sections define each of these aspects of language and discuss why each is important in public speaking.

Use Appropriate Language

As with anything in life, there are positive and negative ways of using language. One of the first concepts a speaker needs to think about when looking at language use is appropriateness. By appropriate, we mean whether the language is suitable or fitting for ourselves, as the speaker; our audience; the speaking context; and the speech itself.

Appropriate for the Speaker

One of the first questions to ask yourself is whether the language you plan on using in a speech fits with your own speaking pattern. Not all language choices are appropriate for all speakers. The language you select should be suitable for you, not someone else. If you’re a first-year college student, there’s no need to force yourself to sound like an astrophysicist even if you are giving a speech on new planets. One of the biggest mistakes novice speakers make is thinking that they have to use million-dollar words because it makes them sound smarter. Actually, million-dollar words don’t tend to function well in oral communication to begin with, so using them will probably make you uncomfortable as a speaker. Also, it may be difficult for you or the audience to understand the nuances of meaning when you use such words, so using them can increase the risk of denotative or connotative misunderstandings.

Appropriate for the Audience

The second aspect of appropriateness asks whether the language you are choosing is appropriate for your specific audience. Let’s say that you’re an engineering student. If you’re giving a presentation in an engineering class, you can use language that other engineering students will know. On the other hand, if you use that engineering vocabulary in a public speaking class, many audience members will not understand you. As another example, if you are speaking about the Great Depression to an audience of young adults, you can’t assume they will know the meaning of terms like “New Deal” and “WPA,” which would be familiar to an audience of senior citizens. In other chapters of this book, we have explained the importance of audience analysis; once again, audience analysis is a key factor in choosing the language to use in a speech.

Appropriate for the Context

The next question about appropriateness is whether the language you will use is suitable or fitting for the context itself. The language you may employ if you’re addressing a student assembly in a high school auditorium will differ from the language you would use at a business meeting in a hotel ballroom. If you’re giving a speech at an outdoor rally, you cannot use the same language you would use in a classroom. Recall that the speaking context includes the occasion, the time of day, the mood of the audience, and other factors in addition to the physical location. Take the entire speaking context into consideration when you make the language choices for your speech.

Appropriate for the Topic

The fourth and final question about the appropriateness of language involves whether the language is appropriate for your specific topic. If you are speaking about the early years of The Walt Disney Company, would you want to refer to Walt Disney as a “thaumaturgic” individual (i.e., one who works wonders or miracles)? While the word “thaumaturgic” may be accurate, is it the most appropriate for the topic at hand? As another example, if your speech topic is the dual residence model of string theory, it makes sense to expect that you will use more sophisticated language than if your topic was a basic introduction to the physics of, say, sound or light waves.

Use Vivid Language

After appropriateness, the second main guideline for using language is to use vivid language . Vivid language helps your listeners create strong, distinct, clear, and memorable mental images. Good vivid language usage helps an audience member truly understand and imagine what a speaker is saying. Two common ways to make your speaking more vivid are through the use of imagery and rhythm.

Imagery is the use of language to represent objects, actions, or ideas. The goal of imagery is to help an audience member create a mental picture of what a speaker is saying. A speaker who uses imagery successfully will tap into one or more of the audience’s five basic senses (hearing, taste, touch, smell, and sight). Three common tools of imagery are concreteness, simile, and metaphor.

Concreteness

We have previously discussed the importance of concrete language.  When we use language that is concrete, we attempt to help our audiences see specific realities or actual instances instead of abstract theories and ideas. The goal of concreteness is to help you, as a speaker, show your audience something instead of just telling them. Imagine you’ve decided to give a speech on the importance of freedom. You could easily stand up and talk about the philosophical work of Rudolf Steiner, who divided the ideas of freedom into freedom of thought and freedom of action. If you’re like us, even reading that sentence can make you want to go to sleep. Instead of defining what those terms mean and discussing the philosophical merits of Steiner, you could use real examples where people’s freedom to think or freedom to behave has been stifled. For example, you could talk about how Afghani women under Taliban rule have been denied access to education, and how those seeking education have risked public flogging and even execution [7] . You could further illustrate how Afghani women under the Taliban are forced to adhere to rigid interpretations of Islamic law that functionally limit their behavior. As illustrations of the two freedoms discussed by Steiner, these examples make things more concrete for audience members and thus easier to remember. Ultimately, the goal of concreteness is to show an audience something instead of talking about it abstractly.

Another form of imagery is simile . As you likely learned in English courses, a simile is a figure of speech in which two unlike things are explicitly compared. Both aspects being compared within a simile are able to remain separate within the comparison. The following are some examples:

• The thunderous applause was  like  a party among the gods.
• After the revelation, she was as angry  as  a raccoon caught in a cage.
• Love is  like  a battlefield.

When we look at these two examples, you’ll see that two words have been italicized: “like” and “as.” All similes contain either “like” or “as” within the comparison. Speakers use similes to help an audience understand a specific characteristic being described within the speech. In the first example, we are connecting the type of applause being heard to something supernatural, so we can imagine that the applause was huge and enormous. Now think how you would envision the event if the simile likened the applause to a mime convention—your mental picture changes dramatically, doesn’t it?

To effectively use similes within your speech, first look for instances where you may already be finding yourself using the words “like” or “as”—for example, “his breath smelled like a fishing boat on a hot summer day.” Second, when you find situations where you are comparing two things using “like” or “as,” examine what it is that you are actually comparing. For example, maybe you’re comparing someone’s breath to the odor of a fishing vessel. Lastly, once you see what two ideas you are comparing, check the mental picture for yourself. Are you getting the kind of mental image you desire? Is the image too strong? Is the image too weak? You can always alter the image to make it stronger or weaker depending on what your aim is.

The other commonly used form of imagery is the metaphor, or a figure of speech where a term or phrase is applied to something in a nonliteral way to suggest a resemblance. In the case of a metaphor, one of the comparison items is said to  be  the other (even though this is realistically not possible).

Metaphors  are comparisons made by speaking of one thing in terms of another.  Similes are similar to metaphors in how they function; however, similes make comparisons by using the word “like” or “as,” whereas metaphors do not. Let’s look at a few examples:

• Love is a  battlefield .
• Upon hearing the charges, the accused  clammed up  and refused to speak without a lawyer.
• Every year a new  crop  of activists are  born .

In these examples, the comparison word has been italicized. Let’s think through each of these examples. In the first one, the comparison is the same as one of our simile examples except that the word “like” is omitted—instead of being  like  a battlefield, the metaphor states that love  is  a battlefield, and it is understood that the speaker does not mean the comparison literally. In the second example, the accused “clams up,” which means that the accused refused to talk in the same way a clam’s shell is closed. In the third example, we refer to activists as “crops” that arise anew with each growing season, and we use “born” figuratively to indicate that they come into being—even though it is understood that they are not newborn infants at the time when they become activists.

To use a metaphor effectively, first determine what you are trying to describe. For example, maybe you are talking about a college catalog that offers a wide variety of courses. Second, identify what it is that you want to say about the object you are trying to describe. Depending on whether you want your audience to think of the catalog as good or bad, you’ll use different words to describe it. Lastly, identify the other object you want to compare the first one to, which should mirror the intentions in the second step. Let’s look at two possible metaphors:

• Students  groped  their way through the  maze  of courses in the catalog.
• Students  feasted on  the  abundance  of courses in the catalog.

While both of these examples evoke comparisons with the course catalog, the first example is clearly more negative and the second is more positive.

One mistake people often make in using metaphors is to make two incompatible comparisons in the same sentence or line of thought. Here is an example:

• “That’s awfully thin gruel for the right wing to hang their hats on.” [9]

This is known as a mixed metaphor, and it often has an incongruous or even hilarious effect. Unless you are aiming to entertain your audience with fractured use of language, be careful to avoid mixed metaphors.

The power of a metaphor is in its ability to create an image that is linked to emotion in the mind of the audience.

For example, it is one thing to talk about racial injustice, it is quite another for the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. to note that people have been “…battered by storms of persecution and staggered by the winds of police brutality.” Throughout his “ I Have a Dream ” speech, the Reverend Dr. King uses the metaphor of the checking account to make his point.

He notes that the crowd has come to the March on Washington to “cash a check” and claims that America has “defaulted on this promissory note” by giving “the Negro people a bad check, a check that has come back “insufficient funds.” By using checking and bank account terms that most people are familiar with, the Reverend Dr. King is able to more clearly communicate what he believes has occurred. In addition, the use of this metaphor acts as a sort of “shortcut.” He gets his point across very quickly by comparing the problems of civil rights to the problems of a checking account.

In the same speech the Reverend Dr. King also makes use of similes, which also compare two things but do so using “like” or “as.” In discussing his goals for the Civil Rights movement in his “I Have a Dream” speech, the Reverend Dr. exclaims: “No, no we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until justice rolls down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream.” Similes also help make your message clearer by using ideas that are more concrete for your audience. For example, to give the audience an idea of what a winter day looked like you could note that the “snow looked as solid as pearls.” To communicate sweltering heat, you could say that “the tar on the road looked like satin.” A simile most of us are familiar with is the notion of the United States being “like a melting pot” with regard to its diversity. We also often note that a friend or colleague that stays out of conflicts between friends is “like Switzerland.” In each of these instances, similes have been used to more clearly and vividly communicate a message.

Our second guideline for effective language in a speech is to use rhythm. When most people think of rhythm, they immediately think about music. What they may not realize is that language is inherently musical; at least it can be. Rhythm refers to the patterned, recurring variance of elements of sound or speech. Whether someone is striking a drum with a stick or standing in front of a group speaking, rhythm is an important aspect of human communication. Think about your favorite public speaker. If you analyze their speaking pattern, you’ll notice that there is a certain cadence to the speech. While much of this cadence is a result of the nonverbal components of speaking, some of the cadence comes from the language that is chosen as well. Let’s examine types of rhythmic language: parallelism, antithesis, repetition, alliteration, and assonance.

Parallelism

When listing items in a sequence, audiences will respond more strongly when those ideas are presented in a grammatically parallel fashion, which is referred to as parallelism. For example, look at the following two examples and determine which one sounds better to you:

• “Give me liberty or I’d rather die.”
• “Give me liberty or give me death.”

Technically, you’re saying the same thing in both, but the second one has better rhythm, and this rhythm comes from the parallel construction of “give me.” The lack of parallelism in the first example makes the sentence sound disjointed and ineffective.

Antithesis allows you to use contrasting statements in order to make a rhetorical point. Perhaps the most famous example of antithesis comes from the Inaugural Address of President John F. Kennedy when he stated, “And so, my fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country.” In Reverend Jackson’s “ Rainbow Coalition ” speech he notes, “I challenge them to put hope in their brains and not dope in their veins.” In each of these cases, the speakers have juxtaposed two competing ideas in one statement to make an argument in order to draw the listener’s attention.

You’re easy on the eyes — hard on the heart. – Terri Clark

Parallel Structure and Language

Antithesis is often worded using parallel structure or language. Parallel structure is the balance of two or more similar phrases or clauses, and parallel wording is the balance of two or more similar words. The Reverend Dr. King’s “I Have a Dream” speech exemplifies both strategies in action. Indeed, the section where he repeats “I Have a Dream” over and over again is an example of the use of both parallel structure and language. The use of parallel structure and language helps your audience remember without beating them over the head with repetition. If worded and delivered carefully, you can communicate a main point over and over again, as did the Reverend Dr. King, and it doesn’t seem as though you are simply repeating the same phrase over and over. You are often doing just that, of course, but because you are careful with your wording (it should be powerful and creative, not pedantic) and your delivery (the correct use of pause, volumes, and other elements of delivery), the audience often perceives the repetition as dramatic and memorable. The use of parallel language and structure can also help you when you are speaking persuasively. Through the use of these strategies, you can create a speech that takes your audience through a series of ideas or arguments that seem to “naturally” build to your conclusion.

As we mentioned earlier in this chapter, one of the major differences between oral and written language is the use of repetition. Because speeches are communicated orally, audience members need to hear the core of the message repeated consistently. Repetition as a linguistic device is designed to help audiences become familiar with a short piece of the speech as they hear it over and over again. By repeating a phrase during a speech, you create a specific rhythm. Probably the most famous and memorable use of repetition within a speech is Martin Luther King Jr.’s use of “I have a dream” in his speech at the Lincoln Memorial on August 1963 during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. In that speech, Martin Luther King Jr. repeated the phrase “I have a dream” eight times to great effect. If worded and delivered carefully, you can communicate a main point over and over again, as did the Reverend Dr. King, and it doesn’t seem as though you are simply repeating the same phrase over and over. Because you are careful with your wording (it should be powerful and creative, not pedantic) and your delivery (the correct use of pause, volumes, and other elements of delivery), the audience often perceives the repetition as dramatic and memorable.

Alliteration

Another type of rhythmic language is alliteration or repeating two or more words in a series that begin with the same consonant. In the  Harry Potter  novel series, the author uses alliteration to name the four wizards who founded Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry: Godric Gryffindor, Helga Hufflepuff, Rowena Ravenclaw, and Salazar Slytherin. There are two basic types of alliteration: immediate juxtaposition and nonimmediate juxtaposition.  Immediate juxtaposition  occurs when the consonants clearly follow one after the other—as we see in the  Harry Potter  example.  Nonimmediate juxtaposition  occurs when the consonants are repeated in nonadjacent words (e.g., “It is the  p oison that we must  p urge from our  p olitics, the wall that we must tear down before the hour grows too late”) [11] . Sometimes you can actually use examples of both immediate and nonimmediate juxtaposition within a single speech. The following example is from Bill Clinton’s acceptance speech at the 1992 Democratic National Convention: “Somewhere at this very moment, a child is b eing  b orn in America. Let it be our cause to give that child a  h appy  h ome, a  h ealthy family, and a  h opeful future” [7] .

Assonance is similar to alliteration, but instead of relying on consonants, assonance gets its rhythm from repeating the same vowel sounds with different consonants in the stressed syllables. The phrase “how now brown cow,” which elocution students traditionally used to learn to pronounce rounded vowel sounds, is an example of assonance. While rhymes like “free as a breeze,” “mad as a hatter,” and “no pain, no gain” are examples of assonance, speakers should be wary of relying on assonance because when it is overused it can quickly turn into bad poetry.

Personalized Language

We’re all very busy people. Perhaps you’ve got work, studying, classes, a job, and extracurricular activities to juggle. Because we are all so busy, one problem that speakers often face is trying to get their audience interested in their topic or motivated to care about their argument. A way to help solve this problem is through the use of language that personalizes your topic. Rather than saying, “One might argue” say “You might argue.” Rather than saying “This could impact the country in ways we have not yet imagined,” say “This could impact your life in ways that you have not imagined.” By using language that directly connects your topic or argument to the audience you better your chances of getting your audience to listen and to be persuaded that your subject matter is serious and important to them. Using words like “us,” “you,” and “we” can be a subtle means of getting your audience to pay attention to your speech. Most people are most interested in things that they believe impact their lives directly—make those connections clear for your audience by using personal language.

Use Inclusive Language

Language can either inspire your listeners or turn them off very quickly. One of the fastest ways to alienate an audience is through the use of non-inclusive language. Inclusive language that avoids placing any one group of people above or below other groups while speaking. Let’s look at some common problem areas related to language about gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and disabilities.

Gender-Specific Language

The first common form of non-inclusive language is language that privileges one of the sexes over the other. There are three common problem areas that speakers run into while speaking: using “he” as generic, using “man” to mean all humans, and gender typing jobs.

Generic “He”

The generic “he” happens when a speaker labels all people within a group as “he” when in reality there is a mixed sex group involved. Consider the statement, “Every morning when an officer of the law puts on his badge, he risks his life to serve and protect his fellow citizens.” In this case, we have a police officer that is labeled as male four different times in one sentence. Obviously, all police officers risk their lives when they put on their badges. A better way to word the sentence would be, “Every morning when officers of the law put on their badges, they risk their lives to serve and protect their fellow citizens.” Notice that in the better sentence, we made the subject plural (“officers”) and used neutral pronouns (“they” and “their”) to avoid the generic “he.”

Use of “Man”

Traditionally, speakers of English have used terms like “man,” “mankind,” and (in casual contexts) “guys” when referring to all genders. In the second half of the twentieth century, as society became more aware of gender bias in language, organizations like the National Council of Teachers of English developed guidelines for nonsexist language (National Council of Teachers of English, 2002). For example, instead of using the word “man,” you could refer to the “human race.” Instead of saying, “hey, guys,” you could say, “OK, everyone.” By using gender-fair language you will be able to convey your meaning just as well, and you won’t risk alienating a portion of your audience.

Gender-Typed Jobs

The last common area where speakers get into trouble with gender and language has to do with job titles. It is not unusual for people to assume, for example, that doctors are male and nurses are female. As a result, they may say “she is a woman doctor” or “he is a male nurse” when mentioning someone’s occupation, perhaps not realizing that the statements “she is a doctor” and “he is a nurse” already inform the listener as to the sex of the person holding that job. Speakers sometimes also use a gender-specific pronoun to refer to an occupation that has both males and females. Table 12.1 Gender Type Jobs lists some common gender-specific jobs titles along with more inclusive versions of those job titles.

Table 12.1  Gender Type Jobs

Ethnic Identity

Another type of inclusive language relates to the categories used to highlight an individual’s ethnic identity. Ethnic identity refers to a group an individual identifies with based on a common culture. For example, within the United States we have numerous ethnic groups, including Italian Americans, Irish Americans, Japanese Americans, Vietnamese Americans, Cuban Americans, and Mexican Americans. As with the earlier example of “male nurse,” avoid statements such as “The committee is made up of four women and a Vietnamese man.” Instead, say, “The committee is made up of four women and a man” or, if race and ethnicity are central to the discussion, “The committee is made up of three European American women, an Israeli American woman, a Brazilian American woman, and a Vietnamese American man.” In recent years, there has been a trend toward steering inclusive language away from broad terms like “Asians” and “Hispanics” because these terms are not considered precise labels for the groups they actually represent. If you want to be safe, the best thing you can do is ask a couple of people who belong to an ethnic group how they prefer to label themselves.

Sexual Orientation

Another area that can cause some problems is referred to as heterosexism. Heterosexism occurs when a speaker presumes that everyone in an audience is heterosexual or that cross-sex relationships are the only norm. For example, a speaker might begin a speech by saying, “I am going to talk about the legal obligations you will have with your future husband or wife.” While this speech starts with the notion that everyone plans on getting married, which isn’t the case, it also assumes that everyone will label their significant others as either “husbands” or “wives.” Although some members of the gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and gender non-conforming communities will use these terms, others prefer for more gender-neutral terms like “spouse” and “partner.” Notice also that we are not using terms such as ‘homosexual’ to refer to multiple distinct sexual orientations, and we are not using outdated terms, such as ‘transexual,’ which are generally no longer accepted terms for gender non-conforming individuals.”

The last category of exclusive versus inclusive language that causes problems for some speakers relates to individuals with physical or mental disabilities. While not always possible in advance of an unknown audience, it’s best to ask a person what terms work for them, based on their lived experiences and identity (Ladau, 2021). Additionally, you may have been taught not to use the word “disabled” and taught to use “person-first” language, in which you identify the person before their disability (i.e., person with autism, person with cerebral palsy). Historically, some disabled individuals and disability service providers pushed person-first language so that others would not solely focus on the disability itself. That is not necessarily wrong, but language evolves over time and the disabled community has started a shift towards “identify-first” language (i.e., disabled, deaf, autistic). This identify-first language places prominence on the disability and is a point of pride (Forber-Pratt, 2019).

Table 12.2 Inclusive Language for Disabilities, provides some other examples of exclusive versus inclusive language.

Table 12.2  Inclusive Language for Disabilities

Use Familiar Language

The last category related to using language appropriately simply asks you to use language that is familiar both to yourself and to your audience. If you are not comfortable with the language you are using, then you are going to be more nervous speaking, which will definitely have an impact on how your audience receives your speech. You may have a hard time speaking genuinely and sincerely if you use unfamiliar language, and this can impair your credibility. Furthermore, you want to make sure that the language you are using is familiar to your audience. If your audience cannot understand what you are saying, you will not have an effective speech.

• Wrench, J. S., McCroskey, J. C., & Richmond, V. P. (2008). Human communication in everyday life: Explanations and applications . Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon, p. 304.
• Lewis, M. P. (2009). Ethnologue  (16th ed.). Retrieved from  http://www.ethnologue.com/ethno_docs/distribution.asp?by=size .
• Lewis, 2009
• Mayell, H. (2003, February). When did “modern” behavior emerge in humans? National Geographic News . Retrieved from  http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2003/02/0220_030220_humanorigins2.html .
• McCroskey, J. C., Wrench, J. S., & Richmond, V. P. (2003). Principles of public speaking . Indianapolis, IN: The College Network.
• Oxford University Press. (2011). How many words are there in the English language? Retrieved from http://oxforddictionaries.com/page/howmanywords
• Clinton, W. J. (2005). My life . New York, NY: Vintage Books, p. 421.
• Iacopino, V., & Rasekh, Z. (1998). The Taliban’s war on women: A health and human rights crisis in Afghanistan . Boston, MA: Physicians for Human Rights.
• National Council of Teachers of English (2002). Guidelines for gender-fair use of language . Retrieved from  http://www.ncte.org/positions/statements/genderfairuseoflang .
• Nordquist, R. (2009). Mixed metaphor . Retrieved from About.com at  http://grammar.about.com/od/mo/g/mixmetterm.htm
• Obama, B. (2008, January 20). The great need of the hour. Remarks delivered at Ebenezer Baptist Church, Atlanta. Retrieved from http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2008/01/the_great_need_of_the_hour.html
• Ladau, E. (2021). Demystifying disability: What to know, what to say, and how to be an ally. New York: Ten Speed Press.
• Forber-Pratt, A. (2019). Yes, you can call me disabled . Retrieved from Quartz.com at https://qz.com/1632728/yes-you-can-call-me-disabled/

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20 Key Differences between Oral and Written Communication

Table of Contents

In business and everyday life, communication is key. But when is it best to speak face-to-face, and when is it better to put things in writing? This blog post explores the differences between oral and written communication and offers insights into when each method is most effective.

Explanation of oral and written communication

The act of using spoken words to transmit messages or information is known as oral communication . This type of communication can take place in various forms such as face-to-face interactions, telephone conversations, and video or audio recordings.

Oral communication involves not just the words being spoken, but also the tone, pitch, and other nonverbal cues such as facial expressions, body language, and gestures. These features of oral communication can impact the effectiveness of the communication and its interpretation.

Moreover, oral communication can be formal, such as a business presentation or a speech, or informal, such as a conversation between friends.

Written communication, on the other hand, involves conveying information through written words.  There are several forms in which it can be presented, such as emails, letters, reports, memos, text messages, social media posts, and other similar methods.

Written communication allows for a more precise and structured expression of ideas, as the writer has the opportunity to carefully choose their words and arrange them in a clear and organized manner.

Unlike oral communication, written communication does not involve nonverbal cues, and therefore relies solely on the words themselves to convey meaning.

Importance of understanding the differences between oral and written communication

Here are five key points on the importance of understanding the differences between oral and written communication: 

1. Clarity: Understanding the differences between oral and written communication can help ensure that the intended message is conveyed accurately and clearly.

2. Tone and nonverbal cues: Oral communication involves tone, pitch, and nonverbal cues, while written communication relies solely on the words themselves. Knowing these differences can help avoid misunderstandings.

3. Audience: Different audiences may have different preferences for oral or written communication. Understanding their preferences can help tailor the message for maximum effectiveness.

4. Formality: Compared to written communication, oral communication tends to be less formal in nature. It is important to recognize the appropriate level of formality required for effective communication to ensure that the intended message is accurately conveyed.

5. Legal implications: In some cases, written communication may be legally binding, while oral communication may not be. Understanding these differences is important for legal and professional contexts.

A brief overview of oral vs written communication

20 Key differences between oral and written communication  

Communication may take many forms, but two of the most common are oral and written communication. Both forms of communication have their own strengths and weaknesses, and understanding these differences can help you choose the right approach for a given situation.

1. Feedback: In oral communication, feedback is immediate as the speaker can see and hear the reaction of the audience in real-time. This allows the speaker to adjust their message, tone, and style to better engage the audience. In contrast, written communication typically has a delayed feedback loop, as it may take some time for the audience to read the message and respond.

2. Channel: Oral communication is spoken, while written communication is written. Oral communication can be face-to-face, over the phone, or through video conferencing, while written communication can be in the form of emails, text messages, or formal and informal letters .

3. Cues:   Nonverbal cues like tone, pitch, body language, and facial expressions play a significant role in oral communication. These cues can add meaning to the message and help convey emotions and attitudes. In contrast, written communication lacks these cues, and relies solely on the words themselves.

4. Structure: Oral communication can be less structured than written communication, as it may involve more improvisation or free-flowing conversation. Written communication, on the other hand, tends to follow a more formal structure, such as a letter or a report, with a clear beginning, middle, and end.

5. Editing: Oral communication does not allow for much editing, as the speaker must deliver the message in real-time. Written communication, on the other hand, can be edited and revised before being sent, allowing the writer to refine their message and ensure clarity.

6. Audience: Oral communication typically involves direct interaction with an audience, such as in a meeting or presentation, while written communication can reach a wider audience, such as through email or social media.

7. Formality: Oral communication is generally more informal than written communication, as it often involves conversational language and may not follow strict grammatical rules . Written communication tends to be more formal, using proper grammar and punctuation, and following established formats.

8. Tone: Tone in oral communication can vary depending on the situation and context. For example, a speaker may use a different tone when giving a serious speech versus a lighthearted one. In written communication, tone can be more controlled and deliberate, as the writer can choose their words carefully to convey a particular message or emotion.

9. Time: Oral communication can be faster and more efficient for simple messages, such as asking a question or giving an answer. However, for more complex or detailed messages, written communication can be more effective, as it allows the writer to carefully consider their words and ensure clarity.

10. Clarity: Oral communication can be subject to interpretation and misunderstandings, as nonverbal cues and tone can sometimes be unclear or misinterpreted. Written communication can be more precise and unambiguous, as the writer has more time to carefully consider their message and choose their words.

11. Memory: Oral communication relies on memory, as the speaker must remember what they want to say and deliver it in real-time. Written communication, on the other hand, can be referred to multiple times, allowing the reader to go back and review the message.

12. Engagement: Oral communication can be more engaging and interactive, as the speaker can use nonverbal cues and engage in a back-and-forth dialogue with the audience. Written communication can be less engaging and interactive, as the reader may not have the opportunity to respond in real time.

13. Preparation: Oral communication requires less preparation time, as the speaker can often rely on their own knowledge and experience. Written communication, on the other hand, requires more preparation time, as the writer must carefully consider their message and choose their words carefully.

14. Impression: The impression created by oral communication is based on personal interaction, such as the speaker’s tone, body language, and facial expressions. This can create a more personal connection between the speaker and the audience and can help to build trust and rapport.

Written communication, on the other hand, may lack this personal touch, and may create a more formal or distant impression. However, written communication can also be more permanent, as the message can be saved and referred to later.

15. Convenience: Oral communication can be more convenient for informal or casual conversations , as it can happen on the spot and doesn’t require much preparation or setup. Written communication, on the other hand, can be more convenient for formal communication or important messages, as it allows the writer to carefully consider their message and ensure clarity.

16. Emotion retention: In oral communication, emotions can be conveyed through tone of voice, facial expressions, and body language. This makes it easier to express and understand the emotional context of the message. In contrast, written communication lacks these immediate emotional cues, and it can be challenging to express and understand emotions effectively.

17. Interruptions: Oral communication can be interrupted by external factors such as noise, distractions, or other people. Written communication, on the other hand, can be read and processed at the reader’s own pace, without external interruptions.

18. Accessibility: Written communication can be more accessible to people with disabilities, as it can be converted into different formats such as large print, or audio. Oral communication, on the other hand, may not be accessible to people with hearing or speech impairments. 

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), over 1 billion people globally live with some form of disability, which can include hearing impairments, visual impairments, cognitive impairments, and physical impairments. Providing written information can help to ensure that these individuals are able to access important information and participate fully in society.

19. Permanence: Written communication can be more permanent, as it can be saved and referred to later. Oral communication, on the other hand, is more transient and ephemeral, as it is delivered in real time and cannot be revisited later.

20. Context: The context of oral communication can be more important, as nonverbal cues and tone can add meaning and significance to the message. Written communication, on the other hand, can be more context-independent, as the message is conveyed solely through the words themselves.

Factors to consider while choosing oral or written communication

When choosing between oral or written communication, there are several factors to consider. Here are some important ones:

1) Audience:  Take into account the identity of your audience and their preferred mode of communication. Some people may prefer face-to-face conversation, while others may prefer written communication.

Related Reading : Face-to-face communication pros and cons

2) Message: Consider the nature and complexity of the message. Some messages may be better conveyed through oral communication, while others may require the clarity and precision of written communication.

3) Purpose : The benefits of written communication might be more suitable if the aim is to inform or convince. If the purpose is to build relationships or establish trust, oral communication may be more effective.

4) Time: Consider the time available for communication. Oral communication may be more appropriate when time is limited, while written communication may be better when there is more time to carefully craft the message.

5) Confidentiality: Consider the level of confidentiality required for the message. Written communication can be more secure and confidential, while oral communication can be more prone to leaks or misunderstandings.

What kind of situation call for the use of oral and written communication

Various circumstances require distinct forms of communication, and each type of communication, whether oral or written, has its own set of pros and cons. Here are some examples of situations where oral and written communication may be appropriate:

Oral Communication:

• Giving a presentation or speech
• Conducting an interview
• Providing feedback or coaching in a work setting
• Negotiating a deal or contract
• Resolving a conflict through discussion or mediation

Written Communication:

• Sharing important information that needs to be referenced later
• Documenting agreements, policies, or procedures
• Communicating with a large group of people
• Sending detailed instructions or reports
• Providing feedback or comments that require time for consideration and revision

In many cases, a combination of oral and written communication may be most effective.

Similarities between oral and written communication

Difference between oral, written, and non-verbal communication

Difference between oral, written, and verbal communication

Why is oral communication better than written communication? 

In certain situations, oral communication can be more effective than written communication. For example, oral communication can be better for conveying emotions and building rapport, as tone of voice and body language can convey meaning and create a personal connection that written words may not be able to achieve.

In addition, oral communication brings the advantage of getting instant feedback from the receiver which may get delayed using written communication.  However, the decision between oral and written communication ultimately relies on the context and objectives of the communication.

Importance of choosing the right mode of communication  

Choosing the right mode of communication is crucial for effective communication and achieving the desired outcome. Different modes of communication have their own strengths and weaknesses, and choosing the wrong mode can result in miscommunication, confusion, and even conflict.

It is important to consider various factors such as the nature of the message, the audience, the purpose of the communication, and the cultural context before choosing the mode of communication.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q1) what is the difference between oral and spoken communication .

Ans: Oral communication refers to any form of communication that uses the mouth, including both spoken and non-spoken elements such as gestures and facial expressions.  In contrast, spoken communication refers specifically to the utilization of spoken language to transmit a message. In other words, spoken communication is a subset of oral communication that only includes the use of spoken words.

Q2) What are the three differences between oral and written language styles?  

Ans: Oral language tends to be more spontaneous, while written language is usually more planned and revised. Secondly, written language is often more formal and structured, whereas oral language can be more casual and conversational.

Q3) What is one main difference between spoken and written language? 

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13.2 Using Language Effectively

Learning objectives.

• Explain what it means to use appropriate language.
• Explain what is meant by vivid language.
• Define inclusive language and explain why using it is important for public speakers.
• Explain the importance of using familiar language in public speaking.

Kimba Howard – megaphone – CC BY 2.0.

When considering how to use language effectively in your speech, consider the degree to which the language is appropriate, vivid, inclusive, and familiar. The next sections define each of these aspects of language and discuss why each is important in public speaking.

Use Appropriate Language

As with anything in life, there are positive and negative ways of using language. One of the first concepts a speaker needs to think about when looking at language use is appropriateness. By appropriate, we mean whether the language is suitable or fitting for ourselves, as the speaker; our audience; the speaking context; and the speech itself.

Appropriate for the Speaker

One of the first questions to ask yourself is whether the language you plan on using in a speech fits with your own speaking pattern. Not all language choices are appropriate for all speakers. The language you select should be suitable for you, not someone else. If you’re a first-year college student, there’s no need to force yourself to sound like an astrophysicist even if you are giving a speech on new planets. One of the biggest mistakes novice speakers make is thinking that they have to use million-dollar words because it makes them sound smarter. Actually, million-dollar words don’t tend to function well in oral communication to begin with, so using them will probably make you uncomfortable as a speaker. Also, it may be difficult for you or the audience to understand the nuances of meaning when you use such words, so using them can increase the risk of denotative or connotative misunderstandings.

Appropriate for the Audience

The second aspect of appropriateness asks whether the language you are choosing is appropriate for your specific audience. Let’s say that you’re an engineering student. If you’re giving a presentation in an engineering class, you can use language that other engineering students will know. On the other hand, if you use that engineering vocabulary in a public speaking class, many audience members will not understand you. As another example, if you are speaking about the Great Depression to an audience of young adults, you can’t assume they will know the meaning of terms like “New Deal” and “WPA,” which would be familiar to an audience of senior citizens. In other chapters of this book, we have explained the importance of audience analysis; once again, audience analysis is a key factor in choosing the language to use in a speech.

Appropriate for the Context

The next question about appropriateness is whether the language you will use is suitable or fitting for the context itself. The language you may employ if you’re addressing a student assembly in a high school auditorium will differ from the language you would use at a business meeting in a hotel ballroom. If you’re giving a speech at an outdoor rally, you cannot use the same language you would use in a classroom. Recall that the speaking context includes the occasion, the time of day, the mood of the audience, and other factors in addition to the physical location. Take the entire speaking context into consideration when you make the language choices for your speech.

Appropriate for the Topic

The fourth and final question about the appropriateness of language involves whether the language is appropriate for your specific topic. If you are speaking about the early years of The Walt Disney Company, would you want to refer to Walt Disney as a “thaumaturgic” individual (i.e., one who works wonders or miracles)? While the word “thaumaturgic” may be accurate, is it the most appropriate for the topic at hand? As another example, if your speech topic is the dual residence model of string theory, it makes sense to expect that you will use more sophisticated language than if your topic was a basic introduction to the physics of, say, sound or light waves.

Use Vivid Language

After appropriateness, the second main guideline for using language is to use vivid language. Vivid language helps your listeners create strong, distinct, clear, and memorable mental images. Good vivid language usage helps an audience member truly understand and imagine what a speaker is saying. Two common ways to make your speaking more vivid are through the use of imagery and rhythm.

Imagery is the use of language to represent objects, actions, or ideas. The goal of imagery is to help an audience member create a mental picture of what a speaker is saying. A speaker who uses imagery successfully will tap into one or more of the audience’s five basic senses (hearing, taste, touch, smell, and sight). Three common tools of imagery are concreteness, simile, and metaphor.

Concreteness

When we use language that is concrete , we attempt to help our audiences see specific realities or actual instances instead of abstract theories and ideas. The goal of concreteness is to help you, as a speaker, show your audience something instead of just telling them. Imagine you’ve decided to give a speech on the importance of freedom. You could easily stand up and talk about the philosophical work of Rudolf Steiner, who divided the ideas of freedom into freedom of thought and freedom of action. If you’re like us, even reading that sentence can make you want to go to sleep. Instead of defining what those terms mean and discussing the philosophical merits of Steiner, you could use real examples where people’s freedom to think or freedom to behave has been stifled. For example, you could talk about how Afghani women under Taliban rule have been denied access to education, and how those seeking education have risked public flogging and even execution (Iacopino & Rasekh, 1998). You could further illustrate how Afghani women under the Taliban are forced to adhere to rigid interpretations of Islamic law that functionally limit their behavior. As illustrations of the two freedoms discussed by Steiner, these examples make things more concrete for audience members and thus easier to remember. Ultimately, the goal of concreteness is to show an audience something instead of talking about it abstractly.

The second form of imagery is simile . As you probably learned in English courses, a simile is a figure of speech in which two unlike things are explicitly compared. Both aspects being compared within a simile are able to remain separate within the comparison. The following are some examples:

• The thunderous applause was like a party among the gods.
• After the revelation, she was as angry as a raccoon caught in a cage.
• Love is like a battlefield.

When we look at these two examples, you’ll see that two words have been italicized: “like” and “as.” All similes contain either “like” or “as” within the comparison. Speakers use similes to help an audience understand a specific characteristic being described within the speech. In the first example, we are connecting the type of applause being heard to something supernatural, so we can imagine that the applause was huge and enormous. Now think how you would envision the event if the simile likened the applause to a mime convention—your mental picture changes dramatically, doesn’t it?

To effectively use similes within your speech, first look for instances where you may already be finding yourself using the words “like” or “as”—for example, “his breath smelled like a fishing boat on a hot summer day.” Second, when you find situations where you are comparing two things using “like” or “as,” examine what it is that you are actually comparing. For example, maybe you’re comparing someone’s breath to the odor of a fishing vessel. Lastly, once you see what two ideas you are comparing, check the mental picture for yourself. Are you getting the kind of mental image you desire? Is the image too strong? Is the image too weak? You can always alter the image to make it stronger or weaker depending on what your aim is.

The other commonly used form of imagery is the metaphor , or a figure of speech where a term or phrase is applied to something in a nonliteral way to suggest a resemblance. In the case of a metaphor, one of the comparison items is said to be the other (even though this is realistically not possible). Let’s look at a few examples:

• Love is a battlefield .
• Upon hearing the charges, the accused clammed up and refused to speak without a lawyer.
• Every year a new crop of activists are born .

In these examples, the comparison word has been italicized. Let’s think through each of these examples. In the first one, the comparison is the same as one of our simile examples except that the word “like” is omitted—instead of being like a battlefield, the metaphor states that love is a battlefield, and it is understood that the speaker does not mean the comparison literally. In the second example, the accused “clams up,” which means that the accused refused to talk in the same way a clam’s shell is closed. In the third example, we refer to activists as “crops” that arise anew with each growing season, and we use “born” figuratively to indicate that they come into being—even though it is understood that they are not newborn infants at the time when they become activists.

To use a metaphor effectively, first determine what you are trying to describe. For example, maybe you are talking about a college catalog that offers a wide variety of courses. Second, identify what it is that you want to say about the object you are trying to describe. Depending on whether you want your audience to think of the catalog as good or bad, you’ll use different words to describe it. Lastly, identify the other object you want to compare the first one to, which should mirror the intentions in the second step. Let’s look at two possible metaphors:

• Students groped their way through the maze of courses in the catalog.
• Students feasted on the abundance of courses in the catalog.

While both of these examples evoke comparisons with the course catalog, the first example is clearly more negative and the second is more positive.

One mistake people often make in using metaphors is to make two incompatible comparisons in the same sentence or line of thought. Here is an example:

• “That’s awfully thin gruel for the right wing to hang their hats on” (Nordquist, 2009).

This is known as a mixed metaphor, and it often has an incongruous or even hilarious effect. Unless you are aiming to entertain your audience with fractured use of language, be careful to avoid mixed metaphors.

Our second guideline for effective language in a speech is to use rhythm. When most people think of rhythm, they immediately think about music. What they may not realize is that language is inherently musical; at least it can be. Rhythm refers to the patterned, recurring variance of elements of sound or speech. Whether someone is striking a drum with a stick or standing in front of a group speaking, rhythm is an important aspect of human communication. Think about your favorite public speaker. If you analyze his or her speaking pattern, you’ll notice that there is a certain cadence to the speech. While much of this cadence is a result of the nonverbal components of speaking, some of the cadence comes from the language that is chosen as well. Let’s examine four types of rhythmic language: parallelism, repetition, alliteration, and assonance.

Parallelism

When listing items in a sequence, audiences will respond more strongly when those ideas are presented in a grammatically parallel fashion, which is referred to as parallelism . For example, look at the following two examples and determine which one sounds better to you:

• “Give me liberty or I’d rather die.”
• “Give me liberty or give me death.”

Technically, you’re saying the same thing in both, but the second one has better rhythm, and this rhythm comes from the parallel construction of “give me.” The lack of parallelism in the first example makes the sentence sound disjointed and ineffective.

As we mentioned earlier in this chapter, one of the major differences between oral and written language is the use of repetition . Because speeches are communicated orally, audience members need to hear the core of the message repeated consistently. Repetition as a linguistic device is designed to help audiences become familiar with a short piece of the speech as they hear it over and over again. By repeating a phrase during a speech, you create a specific rhythm. Probably the most famous and memorable use of repetition within a speech is Martin Luther King Jr.’s use of “I have a dream” in his speech at the Lincoln Memorial on August 1963 during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. In that speech, Martin Luther King Jr. repeated the phrase “I have a dream” eight times to great effect.

Alliteration

Another type of rhythmic language is alliteration , or repeating two or more words in a series that begin with the same consonant. In the Harry Potter novel series, the author uses alliteration to name the four wizards who founded Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry: Godric Gryffindor, Helga Hufflepuff, Rowena Ravenclaw, and Salazar Slytherin. There are two basic types of alliteration: immediate juxtaposition and nonimmediate juxtaposition. Immediate juxtaposition occurs when the consonants clearly follow one after the other—as we see in the Harry Potter example. Nonimmediate juxtaposition occurs when the consonants are repeated in nonadjacent words (e.g., “It is the p oison that we must p urge from our p olitics, the wall that we must tear down before the hour grows too late”) (Obama, 2008). Sometimes you can actually use examples of both immediate and nonimmediate juxtaposition within a single speech. The following example is from Bill Clinton’s acceptance speech at the 1992 Democratic National Convention: “Somewhere at this very moment, a child is b eing b orn in America. Let it be our cause to give that child a h appy h ome, a h ealthy family, and a h opeful future” (Clinton, 2005).

Assonance is similar to alliteration, but instead of relying on consonants, assonance gets its rhythm from repeating the same vowel sounds with different consonants in the stressed syllables. The phrase “how now brown cow,” which elocution students traditionally used to learn to pronounce rounded vowel sounds, is an example of assonance. While rhymes like “free as a breeze,” “mad as a hatter,” and “no pain, no gain” are examples of assonance, speakers should be wary of relying on assonance because when it is overused it can quickly turn into bad poetry.

Use Inclusive Language

Language can either inspire your listeners or turn them off very quickly. One of the fastest ways to alienate an audience is through the use of noninclusive language. Inclusive language is language that avoids placing any one group of people above or below other groups while speaking. Let’s look at some common problem areas related to language about gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and disabilities.

Gender-Specific Language

The first common form of noninclusive language is language that privileges one of the sexes over the other. There are three common problem areas that speakers run into while speaking: using “he” as generic, using “man” to mean all humans, and gender typing jobs.

Generic “He”

The generic “he” happens when a speaker labels all people within a group as “he” when in reality there is a mixed sex group involved. Consider the statement, “Every morning when an officer of the law puts on his badge, he risks his life to serve and protect his fellow citizens.” In this case, we have a police officer that is labeled as male four different times in one sentence. Obviously, both male and female police officers risk their lives when they put on their badges. A better way to word the sentence would be, “Every morning when officers of the law put on their badges, they risk their lives to serve and protect their fellow citizens.” Notice that in the better sentence, we made the subject plural (“officers”) and used neutral pronouns (“they” and “their”) to avoid the generic “he.”

Use of “Man”

Traditionally, speakers of English have used terms like “man,” “mankind,” and (in casual contexts) “guys” when referring to both females and males. In the second half of the twentieth century, as society became more aware of gender bias in language, organizations like the National Council of Teachers of English developed guidelines for nonsexist language (National Council of Teachers of English, 2002). For example, instead of using the word “man,” you could refer to the “human race.” Instead of saying, “hey, guys,” you could say, “OK, everyone.” By using gender-fair language you will be able to convey your meaning just as well, and you won’t risk alienating half of your audience.

Gender-Typed Jobs

The last common area where speakers get into trouble with gender and language has to do with job titles. It is not unusual for people to assume, for example, that doctors are male and nurses are female. As a result, they may say “she is a woman doctor” or “he is a male nurse” when mentioning someone’s occupation, perhaps not realizing that the statements “she is a doctor” and “he is a nurse” already inform the listener as to the sex of the person holding that job. Speakers sometimes also use a gender-specific pronoun to refer to an occupation that has both males and females. Table 13.1 “Gender Type Jobs” lists some common gender-specific jobs titles along with more inclusive versions of those job titles.

Table 13.1 Gender Type Jobs

Ethnic Identity

Another type of inclusive language relates to the categories used to highlight an individual’s ethnic identity. Ethnic identity refers to a group an individual identifies with based on a common culture. For example, within the United States we have numerous ethnic groups, including Italian Americans, Irish Americans, Japanese Americans, Vietnamese Americans, Cuban Americans, and Mexican Americans. As with the earlier example of “male nurse,” avoid statements such as “The committee is made up of four women and a Vietnamese man.” Instead, say, “The committee is made up of four women and a man” or, if race and ethnicity are central to the discussion, “The committee is made up of three European American women, an Israeli American woman, a Brazilian American woman, and a Vietnamese American man.” In recent years, there has been a trend toward steering inclusive language away from broad terms like “Asians” and “Hispanics” because these terms are not considered precise labels for the groups they actually represent. If you want to be safe, the best thing you can do is ask a couple of people who belong to an ethnic group how they prefer to label themselves.

Sexual Orientation

Another area that can cause some problems is referred to as heterosexism. Heterosexism occurs when a speaker presumes that everyone in an audience is heterosexual or that opposite-sex relationships are the only norm. For example, a speaker might begin a speech by saying, “I am going to talk about the legal obligations you will have with your future husband or wife.” While this speech starts with the notion that everyone plans on getting married, which isn’t the case, it also assumes that everyone will label their significant others as either “husbands” or “wives.” Although some members of the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender/transexual community will use these terms, others prefer for more gender neutral terms like “spouse” and “partner.” Moreover, legal obligations for same-sex couples may be very different from those for heterosexual couples. Notice also that we have used the phrase “members of the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender/transexual community” instead of the more clinical-sounding term “homosexual.”

The last category of exclusive versus inclusive language that causes problems for some speakers relates to individuals with physical or mental disabilities. Table 13.2 “Inclusive Language for Disabilities” provides some other examples of exclusive versus inclusive language.

Table 13.2 Inclusive Language for Disabilities

Use Familiar Language

The last category related to using language appropriately simply asks you to use language that is familiar both to yourself and to your audience. If you are not comfortable with the language you are using, then you are going to be more nervous speaking, which will definitely have an impact on how your audience receives your speech. You may have a hard time speaking genuinely and sincerely if you use unfamiliar language, and this can impair your credibility. Furthermore, you want to make sure that the language you are using is familiar to your audience. If your audience cannot understand what you are saying, you will not have an effective speech.

Key Takeaways

• Using appropriate language means that a speaker’s language is suitable or fitting for themselves, as the speaker; our audience; the speaking context; and the speech itself.
• Vivid language helps listeners create mental images. It involves both imagery (e.g., concreteness, simile, and metaphor) and rhythm (e.g., parallelism, repetition, alliteration, and assonance).
• Inclusive language avoids placing any one group of people above or below other groups while speaking. As such, speakers need to think about how they refer to various groups within society.
• Using familiar language is important for a speaker because familiar language will make a speaker more comfortable, which will improve audience perceptions of the speech.
• Watch the news and find an example of someone using inappropriate language. Why did the speaker use inappropriate language? How could the speaker have prevented the use of inappropriate language?
• Watch a presidential press conference or a political speech. Identify the uses of imagery and rhythm. How did the imagery and rhythm help the speech? Can you think of other ways the speaker could have used imagery and rhythm?
• Why is inclusive language important? Write down the various groups you belong to in life; how would you want these groups to be referred to by a speaker? Share your list with a friend or classmate and see if that person reaches the same conclusions you do. If there are differences in your perceptions, why do you think those differences are present?

Clinton, W. J. (2005). My life . New York, NY: Vintage Books, p. 421.

Iacopino, V., & Rasekh, Z. (1998). The Taliban’s war on women: A health and human rights crisis in Afghanistan . Boston, MA: Physicians for Human Rights.

National Council of Teachers of English (2002). Guidelines for gender-fair use of language . Retrieved from http://www.ncte.org/positions/statements/genderfairuseoflang .

Nordquist, R. (2009). Mixed metaphor . Retrieved from About.com at http://grammar.about.com/od/mo/g/mixmetterm.htm

Obama, B. (2008, January 20). The great need of the hour. Remarks delivered at Ebenezer Baptist Church, Atlanta. Retrieved from http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2008/01/the_great_need_of_the_hour.html

Stand up, Speak out Copyright © 2016 by University of Minnesota is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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Chapter 2 Verbal Communication

2.2 Spoken vs. Written Communication: What’s the Difference?

Department of Communication, Indiana State University

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While both spoken and written communication function as agreed-upon rule-governed systems of symbols used to convey meaning, there are enough differences in pragmatic rules between writing and speaking to discuss some of their differences. Imagine for a moment that you’re a college student who desperately needs money. Rather than looking for a job you decide that you’re going to ask your parents for the money you need to make it through the end of the semester. Now, you have a few choices for using verbal communication to do this. You might choose to call your parents or talk to them in person. You may take a different approach and write them a letter or send them an email. You can probably identify your own list of pros and cons for each of these approaches. But really, what’s the difference between writing and talking in these situations? Let’s look at four of the major differences between the two: 1) formal versus informal, 2) synchronous versus asynchronous, 3) recorded versus unrecorded, and 4) privacy.

Case In Point: Informal versus Formal Communication

Text Version

FYI… we’re meeting on friday. wanna go to the office party after? its byob so bring w/e you want. Last years was sooo fun. Your dancing made everyone lol! hope to see ya there 🙂 -T

Letter Version

For your information, we are having a meeting on Friday, November 6th. Afterward, there will be an office party. Do you want to go? It will be a Bring Your Own Beverage party, so feel welcome to bring whatever you like. Last years was so fun, your dancing made everyone laugh out loud!

I hope to see you there,

The first difference between spoken and written communication is that we generally use spoken communication informally while we use written communication formally . Consider how you have been trained to talk versus how you have been trained to write. Have you ever turned in a paper to a professor that “sounds” like how you talk? How was that paper graded compared to one that follows the more formal structures and rules of the English language? In western societies like the U.S., we follow more formal standards for our written communication than our spoken communication. With a few exceptions, we generally tolerate verbal mistakes (e.g. “should of” rather than “should have”) and qualifiers (e.g. “uh” “um” “you know,” etc.) in our speech, but not our writing. Consider a written statement such as, “I should of, um, gone and done somethin’ ‘bout it’ but, um, I I didn’t do nothin’.” In most written contexts, this is considered unacceptable written verbal communication. However, most of us would not give much thought to hearing this statement spoken aloud by someone. While we may certainly notice mistakes in another’s speech, we are generally not inclined to correct those mistakes as we would in written contexts. Even though most try to speak without qualifiers and verbal mistakes, there is something to be said about those utterances in our speech while engaging in an interpersonal conversation. According to John Du Bois (2014), the way two people use utterances and structure their sentences during conversation creates an opportunity to find new meaning in the language and develop “parallelism” which can lead to a natural feeling of liking or sympathy in the conversation partner. Even though it may seem like formal language is valued over informal, this informal language that most of us use when we speak inadvertently contributes to bringing people closer together.

While writing is generally more formal and speech more informal, there are some exceptions, especially with the growing popularity of new technologies. For the first time in history, we are now seeing exceptions in our uses of speech and writing. Using text messaging and email, people are engaging in forms of writing using more informal rule structures, making their writing “sound” more like a conversation. Likewise, this style of writing often attempts to incorporate the use of “nonverbal” communication (known as emoticons) to accent the writing. Consider the two examples in the box above. One is an example of written correspondence using text while the other is a roughly equivalent version following the more formal written guidelines of a letter.

Notice the informality in the text version. While it is readable, it reads as if Tesia was actually speaking in a conversation rather than writing a document. Have you noticed that when you turn in written work that has been written in email programs, the level of formality of the writing decreases? However, when students use a word processing program like Microsoft Word, the writing tends to follow formal rules more often. As we continue using new technologies to communicate, new rule systems for those mediums will continue altering the rule systems in other forms of communication.

The second difference between spoken and written forms of verbal communication is that spoken communication or speech is almost entirely synchronous while written communication is almost entirely asynchronous. Synchronous communication is communication that takes place in real time , such as a conversation with a friend. When we are in conversation and even in public speaking situations, immediate feedback and response from the receiver is the rule. For instance, when you say “hello” to someone, you expect that the person will respond immediately. You do not expect that the person will get back to you sometime later in response to your greeting. In contrast, asynchronous communication is communication that is not immediate and occurs over longer periods of time , such as letters, email, or even text messages at times. When someone writes a book, letter, email, or text, there is no expectation from the sender that the receiver will provide an immediate response. Instead, the expectation is that the receiver will receive the message, and respond to it when they have time. This is one of the reasons people sometimes choose to send an email instead of calling another person because it allows the receiver to respond when they have time rather than “putting them on the spot” to respond right away.

Just as new technologies are changing the rules of formality and informality, they are also creating new situations that break the norms of written communication as asynchronous and spoken communication as synchronous. Voicemail has turned the telephone and our talk into asynchronous forms of communication. Even though we speak in these contexts, we understand that if we leave a message on voicemail we will not get an immediate reply. Instead, we understand that the receiver will call us back at their convenience. In this example, even though the channel of communication is speaking, there is no expectation for immediate response to the sent message. Similarly, texting is a form of written communication that follows the rules of spoken conversation in that it functions as synchronous communication. When you type a text to someone you know, the expectation is that they will respond almost immediately. The lines continue to blur when video chats were introduced as communication technologies. These are a form of synchronous communication that mimics face-to-face interaction and in some cases even have an option to send written messages to others. The possible back and forth between written and spoken communication has allowed many questions to arise about rules and meaning behind interactions. Maria Sindoni (2014) explains in her article, “Through the Looking Glass,” that even though people are having a synchronous conversation and are sharing meaning through their words, they are ultimately in different rooms and communicating through a machine which makes the meaning of their exchanges more ambiguous.

The third difference between spoken and written communication is that written communication is generally archived and recorded for later retrieval , while spoken communication is generally not recorded. When we talk with friends, we do not tend to take notes or tape record our conversations. Instead, conversations tend to be ongoing and cataloged into our personal memories rather than recorded in an easily retrievable written format. On the other hand, it is quite easy to reference written works such as books, journals, magazines, newspapers, and electronic sources such as web pages and emails for long periods after the sender has written them. New communication applications like Vine add to the confusion. This app allows users to record themselves and post it to their profile. This would be considered a form of spoken communication, yet it is archived and asynchronous so others can look at the videos years after the original posting. To make the matter more complicated, Snapchat’s many functions come into play. On Snapchat you have the option of sending videos or photos that are traditionally not archived since the sender decides how long the receiver has to view it, then will theoretically disappear forever. Most recently with the addition of My Story, users of the app can post a picture for 24 hours and have their friends view it multiple times. The feeling of technological communication not being archived can lead to a false sense of privacy, which can lead to some negative consequences.

As with the previous rules we’ve discussed, new technologies are changing many of the dynamics of speech and writing. For example, many people use email and texting informally like spoken conversation, as an informal form of verbal communication. Because of this, they often expect that these operate and function like a spoken conversation with the belief that it is a private conversation between the sender and receiver. However, many people have gotten into trouble because of what they have “spoken” to others through email and text. The corporation Epson (a large computer electronics manufacturer) was at the center of one of the first lawsuits regarding the recording and archiving of employees’ use of email correspondence. Employees at Epson assumed their email was private and therefore used it to say negative things about their bosses. What they didn’t know was their bosses were saving and printing these email messages, and using the content of these messages to make personnel decisions. When employees sued Epson, the courts ruled in favor of the corporation, stating that they had every right to retain employee email for their records.

As you can see, there are a number of differences between spoken and written forms of verbal communication. Both forms are rule-governed as our definition points out, but the rules are often different for the use of these two types of verbal communication. However, it’s apparent that as new technologies provide more ways for us to communicate, many of our traditional rules for using both speech and writing will continue to blur as we try to determine the “most appropriate” uses of these new communication technologies. As more changes continue to occur in the ways we communicate with one another, more avenues of study will continue to open for those interested in being part of the development of how communication is conducted.

• " 3.3 Spoken versus Written Communication: What's the Difference? ". Introduction to Public Communication. Department of Communication, Indiana State University. ↵

2.2 Spoken vs. Written Communication: What's the Difference? by Department of Communication, Indiana State University is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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12.1: Oral versus Written Language

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• Lisa Coleman, Thomas King, & William Turner
• Southwest Tennessee Community College

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Learning Objectives

• Understand the importance of language.
• Explain the difference between denotative and connotative definitions.
• Understand how denotative and connotative definitions can lead to misunderstandings.
• Differentiate between oral and written language.

When we use the word “language,” we are referring to the words you choose to use in your speech—so by definition, our focus is on spoken language. Spoken language has always existed prior to written language. Wrench, McCroskey, and Richmond suggested that if you think about the human history of language as a twelve-inch ruler, written language or recorded language has only existed for the “last quarter of an inch.” [1] Furthermore, of the more than six thousand languages that are spoken around the world today, only a minority of them actually use a written alphabet. [2] To help us understand the importance of language, we will first look at the basic functions of language and then delve into the differences between oral and written language.

Basic Functions of Language

Language is any formal system of gestures, signs, sounds, and symbols used or conceived as a means of communicating thought. As mentioned above, there are over six thousand language schemes currently in use around the world. The language spoken by the greatest number of people on the planet is Mandarin; other widely spoken languages are English, Spanish, and

Arabic. [3] Language is ultimately important because it is the primary means through which humans have the ability to communicate and interact with one another. Some linguists go so far as to suggest that the acquisition of language skills is the primary advancement that enabled our prehistoric ancestors to flourish and succeed over other hominid species. [4]

In today’s world, effective use of language helps us in our interpersonal relationships at home and at work. Using language effectively also will improve your ability to be an effective public speaker. Because language is an important aspect of public speaking that many students don’t spend enough time developing, we encourage you to take advantage of this chapter.

One of the first components necessary for understanding language is to understand how we assign meaning to words. Words consist of sounds (oral) and shapes (written) that have agreed-upon meanings based on concepts, ideas, and memories. When we write the word “blue,” we may be referring to a portion of the visual spectrum dominated by energy with a wavelength of roughly 440–490 nanometers. You could also say that the color in question is an equal mixture of both red and green light. While both of these are technically correct ways to interpret the word “blue,” we’re pretty sure that neither of these definitions is how you thought about the word. When hearing the word “blue,” you may have thought of your favorite color, the color of the sky on a spring day, or the color of a really ugly car you saw in the parking lot. When people think about language, there are two different types of meanings that people must be aware of: denotative and connotative.

Denotative Meaning

Denotative meaning is the specific meaning associated with a word. We sometimes refer to denotative meanings as dictionary definitions. The definitions provided above for the word “blue” are examples of definitions that might be found in a dictionary. The first dictionary was written by Robert Cawdry in 1604 and was called  Table Alphabeticall . This dictionary of the English language consisted of three thousand commonly spoken English words. Today, the  Oxford English Dictionary  contains more than 200,000 words. [5]

Connotative Meaning

Connotative meaning is the idea suggested by or associated with a word. In addition to the examples above, the word “blue” can evoke many other ideas:

State of depression (feeling blue)

Indication of winning (a blue ribbon)

Side during the Civil War (blues vs. grays)

Sudden event (out of the blue)

We also associate the color blue with the sky and the ocean. Maybe your school’s colors or those of your archrival include blue. There are also various forms of blue: aquamarine, baby blue, navy blue, royal blue, and so on. Some miscommunication can occur over denotative meanings of words. For example, one of the authors of this book recently received a flyer for a tennis center open house. The expressed goal was to introduce children to the game of tennis. At the bottom of the flyer, people were encouraged to bring their own racquets if they had them but that “a limited number of racquets will be available.” It turned out that the denotative meaning of the final phrase was interpreted in multiple ways: some parents attending the event perceived it to mean that loaner racquets would be available for use during the open house event, but the people running the open house intended it to mean that parents could purchase racquets onsite. The confusion over denotative meaning probably hurt the tennis center, as some parents left the event feeling they had been misled by the flyer.

Although denotatively based misunderstandings, such as this one, do happen, the majority of communication problems involving language occur because of differing connotative meanings. You may be trying to persuade your audience to support public funding for a new professional football stadium in your city, but if mentioning the team’s or owner’s name creates negative connotations in the minds of audience members, you will not be very persuasive. The potential for misunderstandings based on connotative meaning is an additional reason why audience analysis, discussed earlier in this book, is critically important. By conducting effective audience analysis, you can know in advance how your audience might respond to the connotations of the words and ideas you present. Connotative meanings can not only differ between individuals interacting at the same time but also differ greatly across time periods and cultures. Ultimately, speakers should attempt to have a working knowledge of how their audiences could potentially interpret words and ideas to minimize the chance of miscommunication.

Twelve Ways Oral and Written Language Differ

A second important aspect to understand about language is that oral language (used in public speaking) and written language (used for texts) does not function the same way. Try a brief experiment. Take a textbook, maybe even this one, and read it out loud. When the text is read aloud, does it sound conversational? Probably not. Public speaking, on the other hand, should sound like a conversation. McCroskey, Wrench, and Richmond highlighted the following twelve differences that exist between oral and written language:

Oral language has a smaller variety of words.

Oral language has words with fewer syllables.

Oral language has shorter sentences.

Oral language has more self-reference words ( I ,  me ,  mine ).

Oral language has fewer quantifying terms or precise numerical words.

Oral language has more pseudoquantifying terms ( many ,  few ,  some ).

Oral language has more extreme and superlative words ( none ,  all ,  every ,  always ,  never ).

Oral language has more qualifying statements (clauses beginning with  unless and except ).

Oral language has more repetition of words and syllables.

Oral language uses more contractions.

Oral language has more interjections (“Wow!,” “Really?,” “No!,” “You’re kidding!”).

Oral language has more colloquial and nonstandard words. [6]

These differences exist primarily because people listen to and read information differently. First, when you read information, if you don’t grasp content the first time, you have the ability to reread a section. When we are listening to information, we do not have the ability to “rewind” life and relisten to the information. Second, when you read information, if you do not understand a concept, you can look up the concept in a dictionary or online and gain the knowledge easily. However, we do not always have the ability to walk around with the Internet and look up concepts we don’t understand. Therefore, oral communication should be simple enough to be easily understood in the moment by a specific audience, without additional study or information.

Definition: Word

Language is important in every aspect of our lives because it allows people to communicate in a manner that enables the sharing of common ideas.

Denotative definitions are the agreed-upon meanings of words that are often found in dictionaries, whereas connotative definitions involve individual perceptions of words.

Misunderstandings commonly occur when the source of a message intends one denotative or connotative meaning and the receiver of the message applies a different denotative or connotative meaning to the same word or words.

Oral language is designed to be listened to and to sound conversational, which means that word choice must be simpler, more informal, and more repetitive. Written language uses a larger vocabulary and is more formal.

Find a magazine article and examine its language choices. Which uses of language could be misunderstood as a result of a reader’s connotative application of meaning?

Think of a situation in your own life where denotative or connotative meanings led to a conflict. Why do you think you and the other person had different associations of meaning?

Read a short newspaper article. Take that written article and translate it into language that would be orally appropriate. What changes did you make to adjust the newspaper article from written to oral language? Orally present the revised article to a classmate or friend. Were you successful in adapting your language to oral style?

PRDV008: Preparing and Delivering Presentations

The importance of language.

Read this article, which explains how to use language creatively while avoiding jargon and obscenities.

Ask any professional speaker or speech writer, and they will tell you that language matters. In fact, some of the most important and memorable lines in American history came from speeches given by American presidents:

It is true that you may fool all the people some of the time; you can even fool some of the people all the time; but you can't fool all of the people all the time.  – Abraham Lincoln

Speak softly and carry a big stick .   – Theodore Roosevelt, Sept. 2, 1901. Speech at Minnesota State Fair.

The only thing we have to fear is fear itself .  – Franklin Delano Roosevelt, March 4, 1933

Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country . – John F. Kennedy, Jan. 20, 1961. Inaugural address.

We lose ourselves when we compromise the very ideals that we fight to defend. And we honor those ideals by upholding them not when it's easy, but when it is hard .  – Barack Obama, Dec. 10, 2009. Remarks at the acceptance of the Nobel Peace Prize.

You do not have to be a president or a famous speaker to use language effectively. So in this chapter, we are going to explore the importance of language. First, we will discuss the difference between oral and written language, then we will talk about some basic guidelines for using language, and lastly, we will look at six key elements of language.

Oral versus Written Language

When we use the word language , we are referring to the words you choose to use in your speech – so by definition, our focus is on spoken language. Spoken language has always existed prior to written language. Wrench, McCroskey, and Richmond suggested that if you think about the human history of language as a twelve-inch ruler, written language or recorded language has only existed for the "last quarter of an inch". Wrench, J. S., McCroskey, J. C., & Richmond, V. P. (2008). Human communication in everyday life: Explanations and applications . Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon, p. 304.

Furthermore, of the more than six thousand languages that are spoken around the world today, only a minority of them actually use a written alphabet.Lewis, M. P. (2009). Ethnologue (16th ed.). To help us understand the importance of language, we will first look at the basic functions of language and then delve into the differences between oral and written language.

Basic Functions of Language

Language is any formal system of gestures, signs, sounds, and symbols used or conceived as a means of communicating thought. As mentioned above, there are over six thousand language schemes currently in use around the world. The language spoken by the greatest number of people on the planet is Mandarin; other widely spoken languages are English, Spanish, and Arabic.Lewis, M. P. (2009). Ethnologue (16th ed.).

Language is ultimately important because it is the primary means through which humans have the ability to communicate and interact with one another. Some linguists go so far as to suggest that the acquisition of language skills is the primary advancement that enabled our prehistoric ancestors to flourish and succeed over other hominid species. Mayell, H. (2003, February). When did modern behavior emerge in humans? National Geographic News .

In today's world, effective use of language helps us in our interpersonal relationships at home and at work. Using language effectively also will improve your ability to be an effective public speaker. Because language is an important aspect of public speaking that many students do not spend enough time developing, we encourage you to take advantage of this chapter.

One of the first components necessary for understanding language is to understand how we assign meaning to words. Words consist of sounds (oral) and shapes (written) that have agreed-upon meanings based in concepts, ideas, and memories. When we write the word "blue", we may be referring to a portion of the visual spectrum dominated by energy with a wavelength of roughly 440–490 nanometers.

You could also say that the color in question is an equal mixture of both red and green light. While both of these are technically correct ways to interpret the word "blue", we are pretty sure that neither of these definitions is how you thought about the word. When hearing the word "blue", you may have thought of your favorite color, the color of the sky on a spring day, or the color of a really ugly car you saw in the parking lot. When people think about language, there are two different types of meanings that people must be aware of: denotative and connotative.

Denotative Meaning

Denotative meaning is the specific meaning associated with a word. We sometimes refer to denotative meanings as dictionary definitions. The definitions provided above for the word "blue" are examples of definitions that might be found in a dictionary. The first dictionary was written by Robert Cawdry in 1604 and was called Table Alphabeticall . This dictionary of the English language consisted of three thousand commonly spoken English words. Today, the Oxford English Dictionary contains more than 200,000 words.Oxford University Press. (2011). How many words are there in the English language?

Connotative Meaning

Connotative meaning is the idea suggested by or associated with a word. In addition to the examples above, the word "blue" can evoke many other ideas:

• State of depression – feeling blue
• Indication of winning – a blue ribbon
• Side during the Civil War – blues vs. grays
• Sudden event – out of the blue

We also associate the color blue with the sky and the ocean. Maybe your school's colors or those of your arch rival include blue. There are also various forms of blue: aquamarine, baby blue, navy blue, royal blue, and so on.

Some miscommunication can occur over denotative meanings of words. For example, one of the authors of this book recently received a flyer for a tennis center open house. The expressed goal was to introduce children to the game of tennis. At the bottom of the flyer, people were encouraged to bring their own racquets if they had them but that "a limited number of racquets will be available". It turned out that the denotative meaning of the final phrase was interpreted in multiple ways: some parents attending the event perceived it to mean that loaner racquets would be available for use during the open house event, but the people running the open house intended it to mean that parents could purchase racquets onsite. The confusion over denotative meaning probably hurt the tennis center, as some parents left the event feeling they had been misled by the flyer.

Although denotatively based misunderstanding such as this one do happen, the majority of communication problems involving language occur because of differing connotative meanings. You may be trying to persuade your audience to support public funding for a new professional football stadium in your city, but if mentioning the team's or owner's name creates negative connotations in the minds of audience members, you will not be very persuasive.

The potential for misunderstanding based in connotative meaning is an additional reason why audience analysis, discussed earlier in this book, is critically important. By conducting effective audience analysis, you can know in advance how your audience might respond to the connotations of the words and ideas you present. Connotative meanings can not only differ between individuals interacting at the same time but also differ greatly across time periods and cultures. Ultimately, speakers should attempt to have a working knowledge of how their audiences could potentially interpret words and ideas to minimize the chance of miscommunication.

Twelve Ways Oral and Written Language Differ

A second important aspect to understand about language is that oral language (used in public speaking) and written language (used for texts) does not function the same way. Try a brief experiment. Take a textbook, maybe even this one, and read it out loud. When the text is read aloud, does it sound conversational? Probably not. Public speaking, on the other hand, should sound like a conversation. McCroskey, Wrench, and Richmond highlighted the following twelve differences that exist between oral and written language:

• Oral language has a smaller variety of words.
• Oral language has words with fewer syllables.
• Oral language has shorter sentences.
• Oral language has more self-reference words ( I , me , mine ).
• Oral language has fewer quantifying terms or precise numerical words.
• Oral language has more pseudo-quantifying terms ( many , few , some ).
• Oral language has more extreme and superlative words ( none , all , every , always , never ).
• Oral language has more qualifying statements (clauses beginning with unless and except ).
• Oral language has more repetition of words and syllables.
• Oral language uses more contractions.
• Oral language has more interjections (Wow!, Really?, No!, You're kidding!).
• Oral language has more colloquial and nonstandard words.

These differences exist primarily because people listen to and read information differently. First, when you read information, if you do not grasp content the first time, you have the ability to reread a section. When we are listening to information, we do not have the ability to "rewind" life and re-listen to the information. Second, when you read information, if you do not understand a concept, you can look up the concept in a dictionary or online and gain the knowledge easily. However, we do not always have the ability to walk around with the Internet and look up concepts we do not understand. Therefore, oral communication should be simple enough to be easily understood in the moment by a specific audience, without additional study or information.

Key Takeaways

• Language is important in every aspect of our lives because it allows people to communicate in a manner that enables the sharing of common ideas.
• Denotative definitions are the agreed-upon meanings of words that are often found in dictionaries, whereas connotative definitions involve individual perceptions of words.
• Misunderstandings commonly occur when the source of a message intends one denotative or connotative meaning and the receiver of the message applies a different denotative or connotative meaning to the same word or words.
• Oral language is designed to be listened to and to sound conversational, which means that word choice must be simpler, more informal, and more repetitive. Written language uses a larger vocabulary and is more formal.

Using Language Effectively

When considering how to use language effectively in your speech, consider the degree to which the language is appropriate, vivid, inclusive, and familiar. The next sections define each of these aspects of language and discuss why each is important in public speaking.

Use Appropriate Language

As with anything in life, there are positive and negative ways of using language. One of the first concepts a speaker needs to think about when looking at language use is appropriateness. By appropriate, we mean whether the language is suitable or fitting for ourselves, as the speaker; our audience; the speaking context; and the speech itself.

Appropriate for the Speaker

One of the first questions to ask yourself is whether the language you plan on using in a speech fits with your own speaking pattern. Not all language choices are appropriate for all speakers. The language you select should be suitable for you, not someone else. If you are a first-year college student, there is no need to force yourself to sound like an astrophysicist even if you are giving a speech on new planets.

One of the biggest mistakes novice speakers make is thinking that they have to use million-dollar words because it makes them sound smarter. Actually, million-dollar words do not tend to function well in oral communication to begin with, so using them will probably make you uncomfortable as a speaker. Also, it may be difficult for you or the audience to understand the nuances of meaning when you use such words, so using them can increase the risk of denotative or connotative misunderstandings.

Appropriate for the Audience

The second aspect of appropriateness asks whether the language you are choosing is appropriate for your specific audience. Let's say that you are an engineering student. If you are giving a presentation in an engineering class, you can use language that other engineering students will know. On the other hand, if you use that engineering vocabulary in a public speaking class, many audience members will not understand you.

As another example, if you are speaking about the Great Depression to an audience of young adults, you cannot assume they will know the meaning of terms like "New Deal" and "WPA", which would be familiar to an audience of senior citizens. In other chapters of this book, we have explained the importance of audience analysis; once again, audience analysis is a key factor in choosing the language to use in a speech.

Appropriate for the Context

The next question about appropriateness is whether the language you will use is suitable or fitting for the context itself. The language you may employ if you are addressing a student assembly in a high school auditorium will differ from the language you would use at a business meeting in a hotel ballroom. If you are giving a speech at an outdoor rally, you cannot use the same language you would use in a classroom. Recall that the speaking context includes the occasion, the time of day, the mood of the audience, and other factors in addition to the physical location. Take the entire speaking context into consideration when you make the language choices for your speech.

Appropriate for the Topic

The fourth and final question about the appropriateness of language involves whether the language is appropriate for your specific topic. If you are speaking about the early years of The Walt Disney Company, would you want to refer to Walt Disney as a "thaumaturgic" individual (i.e., one who works wonders or miracles)? While the word "thaumaturgic" may be accurate, is it the most appropriate for the topic at hand? As another example, if your speech topic is the dual residence model of string theory, it makes sense to expect that you will use more sophisticated language than if your topic was a basic introduction to the physics of, say, sound or light waves.

Use Vivid Language

After appropriateness, the second main guideline for using language is to use vivid language. Vivid language helps your listeners create strong, distinct, clear, and memorable mental images. Good vivid language usage helps an audience member truly understand and imagine what a speaker is saying. Two common ways to make your speaking more vivid are through the use of imagery and rhythm.

Imagery is the use of language to represent objects, actions, or ideas. The goal of imagery is to help an audience member create a mental picture of what a speaker is saying. A speaker who uses imagery successfully will tap into one or more of the audience's five basic senses (hearing, taste, touch, smell, and sight). Three common tools of imagery are concreteness, simile, and metaphor.

Concreteness

When we use language that is concrete , we attempt to help our audiences see specific realities or actual instances instead of abstract theories and ideas. The goal of concreteness is to help you, as a speaker, show your audience something instead of just telling them. Imagine you have decided to give a speech on the importance of freedom. You could easily stand up and talk about the philosophical work of Rudolf Steiner, who divided the ideas of freedom into freedom of thought and freedom of action. If you are like us, even reading that sentence can make you want to go to sleep. Instead of defining what those terms mean and discussing the philosophical merits of Steiner, you could use real examples where people's freedom to think or freedom to behave has been stifled.

For example, you could talk about how Afghani women under Taliban rule have been denied access to education, and how those seeking education have risked public flogging and even execution. Iacopino, V., & Rasekh, Z. (1998). The Taliban's War on Women: A Health and Human Rights Crisis in Afghanistan . Boston, MA: Physicians for Human Rights.

You could further illustrate how Afghani women under the Taliban are forced to adhere to rigid interpretations of Islamic law that functionally limit their behavior. As illustrations of the two freedoms discussed by Steiner, these examples make things more concrete for audience members and thus easier to remember. Ultimately, the goal of concreteness is to show an audience something instead of talking about it abstractly.

The second form of imagery is simile . As you probably learned in English courses, a simile is a figure of speech in which two unlike things are explicitly compared. Both aspects being compared within a simile are able to remain separate within the comparison. The following are some examples:

• The thunderous applause was like a party among the gods.
• After the revelation, she was as angry as a raccoon caught in a cage.
• Love is like a battlefield.

When we look at these two examples, you will see that two words have been italicized: "like" and "as". All similes contain either "like" or "as" within the comparison. Speakers use similes to help an audience understand a specific characteristic being described within the speech. In the first example, we are connecting the type of applause being heard to something supernatural, so we can imagine that the applause was huge and enormous. Now think how you would envision the event if the simile likened the applause to a mime convention – your mental picture changes dramatically, doesn't it?

To effectively use similes within your speech, first look for instances where you may already be finding yourself using the words "like" or "as" – for example, "his breath smelled like a fishing boat on a hot summer day". Second, when you find situations where you are comparing two things using "like" or "as", examine what it is that you are actually comparing. For example, maybe you are comparing someone's breath to the odor of a fishing vessel. Lastly, once you see what two ideas you are comparing, check the mental picture for yourself. Are you getting the kind of mental image you desire? Is the image too strong? Is the image too weak? You can always alter the image to make it stronger or weaker depending on what your aim is.

The other commonly used form of imagery is the metaphor , or a figure of speech where a term or phrase is applied to something in a nonliteral way to suggest a resemblance. In the case of a metaphor, one of the comparison items is said to be the other (even though this is realistically not possible). Let's look at a few examples:

• Love is a battlefield .
• Upon hearing the charges, the accused clammed up and refused to speak without a lawyer.
• Every year a new crop of activists are born .

In these examples, the comparison word has been italicized. Let's think through each of these examples. In the first one, the comparison is the same as one of our simile examples except that the word "like" is omitted – instead of being like a battlefield, the metaphor states that love is a battlefield, and it is understood that the speaker does not mean the comparison literally.

In the second example, the accused "clams up", which means that the accused refused to talk in the same way a clam's shell is closed. In the third example, we refer to activists as "crops" that arise anew with each growing season, and we use "born" figuratively to indicate that they come into being – even though it is understood that they are not newborn infants at the time when they become activists.

To use a metaphor effectively, first determine what you are trying to describe. For example, maybe you are talking about a college catalog that offers a wide variety of courses. Second, identify what it is that you want to say about the object you are trying to describe. Depending on whether you want your audience to think of the catalog as good or bad, you will use different words to describe it. Lastly, identify the other object you want to compare the first one to, which should mirror the intentions in the second step. Let's look at two possible metaphors:

• Students groped their way through the maze of courses in the catalog.
• Students feasted on the abundance of courses in the catalog.

While both of these examples evoke comparisons with the course catalog, the first example is clearly more negative and the second is more positive.

One mistake people often make in using metaphors is to make two incompatible comparisons in the same sentence or line of thought. Here is an example:

• "That's awfully thin gruel for the right wing to hang their hats on". Nordquist, R. (2009). Mixed Metaphor .

This is known as a mixed metaphor, and it often has an incongruous or even hilarious effect. Unless you are aiming to entertain your audience with fractured use of language, be careful to avoid mixed metaphors.

Our second guideline for effective language in a speech is to use rhythm. When most people think of rhythm, they immediately think about music. What they may not realize is that language is inherently musical; at least it can be. Rhythm refers to the patterned, recurring variance of elements of sound or speech. Whether someone is striking a drum with a stick or standing in front of a group speaking, rhythm is an important aspect of human communication. Think about your favorite public speaker. If you analyze his or her speaking pattern, you will notice that there is a certain cadence to the speech. While much of this cadence is a result of the nonverbal components of speaking, some of the cadence comes from the language that is chosen as well. Let's examine four types of rhythmic language: parallelism, repetition, alliteration, and assonance.

Parallelism

When listing items in a sequence, audiences will respond more strongly when those ideas are presented in a grammatically parallel fashion, which is referred to as parallelism . For example, look at the following two examples and determine which one sounds better to you:

• Give me liberty or I would rather die.
• Give me liberty or give me death.

Technically, you are saying the same thing in both, but the second one has better rhythm, and this rhythm comes from the parallel construction of give me . The lack of parallelism in the first example makes the sentence sound disjointed and ineffective.

As we mentioned earlier in this chapter, one of the major differences between oral and written language is the use of repetition . Because speeches are communicated orally, audience members need to hear the core of the message repeated consistently. Repetition as a linguistic device is designed to help audiences become familiar with a short piece of the speech as they hear it over and over again.

By repeating a phrase during a speech, you create a specific rhythm. Probably the most famous and memorable use of repetition within a speech is Martin Luther King Jr.'s use of "I have a dream" in his speech at the Lincoln Memorial on August 1963 during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. In that speech, Martin Luther King Jr. repeated the phrase "I have a dream" eight times to great effect.

Alliteration

Another type of rhythmic language is alliteration , or repeating two or more words in a series that begin with the same consonant. In the Harry Potter novel series, the author uses alliteration to name the four wizards who founded Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry: Godric Gryffindor, Helga Hufflepuff, Rowena Ravenclaw, and Salazar Slytherin. There are two basic types of alliteration: immediate juxtaposition and non-immediate juxtaposition . Immediate juxtaposition occurs when the consonants clearly follow one after the other – as we see in the Harry Potter example.

Non-immediate juxtaposition occurs when the consonants are repeated in nonadjacent words (e.g., "It is the p oison that we must p urge from our p olitics, the wall that we must tear down before the hour grows too late"). Obama, B. (2008, January 20). The great need of the hour. Remarks delivered at Ebenezer Baptist Church, Atlanta.

Sometimes you can actually use examples of both immediate and non-immediate juxtaposition within a single speech. The following example is from Bill Clinton's acceptance speech at the 1992 Democratic National Convention: "Somewhere at this very moment, a child is b eing b orn in America. Let it be our cause to give that child a h appy h ome, a h ealthy family, and a h opeful future". Clinton, W. J. (2005). My Life . New York, NY: Vintage Books, p. 421.

Assonance is similar to alliteration, but instead of relying on consonants, assonance gets its rhythm from repeating the same vowel sounds with different consonants in the stressed syllables. The phrase "how now brown cow", which elocution students traditionally used to learn to pronounce rounded vowel sounds, is an example of assonance. While rhymes like "free as a breeze", "mad as a hatter", and "no pain, no gain" are examples of assonance, speakers should be wary of relying on assonance because when it is overused it can quickly turn into bad poetry.

Use Inclusive Language

Language can either inspire your listeners or turn them off very quickly. One of the fastest ways to alienate an audience is through the use of noninclusive language. Inclusive language is language that avoids placing any one group of people above or below other groups while speaking. Let's look at some common problem areas related to language about gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and disabilities.

Gender-Specific Language

The first common form of noninclusive language is language that privileges one of the sexes over the other. There are three common problem areas that speakers run into while speaking: using "he" as generic, using "man" to mean all humans, and gender typing jobs.

Generic "He"

The generic "he" happens when a speaker labels all people within a group as "he" when in reality there is a mixed sex group involved. Consider the statement, "Every morning when an officer of the law puts on his badge, he risks his life to serve and protect his fellow citizens". In this case, we have a police officer that is labeled as male four different times in one sentence. Obviously, both male and female police officers risk their lives when they put on their badges. A better way to word the sentence would be, "Every morning when officers of the law put on their badges, they risk their lives to serve and protect their fellow citizens". Notice that in the better sentence, we made the subject plural ("officers") and used neutral pronouns ("they" and "their") to avoid the generic "he".

Use of "Man"

Traditionally, speakers of English have used terms like "man", "mankind", and (in casual contexts) "guys" when referring to both females and males. In the second half of the twentieth century, as society became more aware of gender bias in language, organizations like the National Council of Teachers of English developed guidelines for nonsexist language. National Council of Teachers of English (2002). Guidelines for Gender-Fair Use of Language .

For example, instead of using the word "man", you could refer to the "human race". Instead of saying, "hey, guys", you could say, "OK, everyone". By using gender-fair language you will be able to convey your meaning just as well, and you will not risk alienating half of your audience.

Gender-Typed Jobs

The last common area where speakers get into trouble with gender and language has to do with job titles. It is not unusual for people to assume, for example, that doctors are male and nurses are female. As a result, they may say "she is a woman doctor" or "he is a male nurse" when mentioning someone's occupation, perhaps not realizing that the statements "she is a doctor" and "he is a nurse" already inform the listener as to the sex of the person holding that job. Speakers sometimes also use a gender-specific pronoun to refer to an occupation that has both males and females.

Table 1 "Gender Type Jobs" lists some common gender-specific jobs titles along with more inclusive versions of those job titles.

Table 1 Gender Type Jobs

Ethnic Identity

Another type of inclusive language relates to the categories used to highlight an individual's ethnic identity. Ethnic identity refers to a group an individual identifies with based on a common culture. For example, within the United States we have numerous ethnic groups, including Italian Americans, Irish Americans, Japanese Americans, Vietnamese Americans, Cuban Americans, and Mexican Americans. As with the earlier example of "male nurse", avoid statements such as "The committee is made up of four women and a Vietnamese man".

Instead, say, "The committee is made up of four women and a man" or, if race and ethnicity are central to the discussion, "The committee is made up of three European American women, an Israeli American woman, a Brazilian American woman, and a Vietnamese American man". In recent years, there has been a trend toward steering inclusive language away from broad terms like "Asians" and "Hispanics" because these terms are not considered precise labels for the groups they actually represent. If you want to be safe, the best thing you can do is ask a couple of people who belong to an ethnic group how they prefer to label themselves.

Sexual Orientation

Another area that can cause some problems is referred to as heterosexism. Heterosexism occurs when a speaker presumes that everyone in an audience is heterosexual or that opposite-sex relationships are the only norm.

For example, a speaker might begin a speech by saying, "I am going to talk about the legal obligations you will have with your future husband or wife". While this speech starts with the notion that everyone plans on getting married, which is not the case, it also assumes that everyone will label their significant others as either "husbands" or "wives". Although some members of the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender/transexual community will use these terms, others prefer for more gender-neutral terms like "spouse" and "partner".

Moreover, legal obligations for same-sex couples may be very different from those for heterosexual couples. Notice also that we have used the phrase "members of the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender/transexual community" instead of the more clinical-sounding term "homosexual".

The last category of exclusive versus inclusive language that causes problems for some speakers relates to individuals with physical or mental disabilities. Table 2 "Inclusive Language for Disabilities" provides some other examples of exclusive versus inclusive language.

Table 2 Inclusive Language for Disabilities

Use Familiar Language

The last category related to using language appropriately simply asks you to use language that is familiar both to yourself and to your audience. If you are not comfortable with the language you are using, then you are going to be more nervous speaking, which will definitely have an impact on how your audience receives your speech. You may have a hard time speaking genuinely and sincerely if you use unfamiliar language, and this can impair your credibility. Furthermore, you want to make sure that the language you are using is familiar to your audience. If your audience cannot understand what you are saying, you will not have an effective speech.

• Using appropriate language means that a speaker's language is suitable or fitting for themselves, as the speaker; our audience; the speaking context; and the speech itself.
• Vivid language helps listeners create mental images. It involves both imagery (e.g., concreteness, simile, and metaphor) and rhythm (e.g., parallelism, repetition, alliteration, and assonance).
• Inclusive language avoids placing any one group of people above or below other groups while speaking. As such, speakers need to think about how they refer to various groups within society.
• Using familiar language is important for a speaker because familiar language will make a speaker more comfortable, which will improve audience perceptions of the speech.

Six Elements of Language

Language is a very important aspect of anyone's public speaking performance. Whether a speaker uses lots of complicated words or words most people have in their vocabularies, language will determine how an audience experiences the speech. To help you think through your language choices, we are going to talk about six important elements of language and how they affect audience perceptions.

The first important element of language is clarity , or the use of language to make sure the audience understands a speaker's ideas in the way the speaker intended. While language, or verbal communication, is only one channel we can use to transmit information, it is a channel that can lend itself to numerous problems. For example, as discussed earlier, if people have different connotative definitions for words, the audience can miss the intended meaning of a message.

Imagine you are listening to a speaker talking and he or she uses the phrase, "Older female relative who became aerodynamic venison road kill", or "Obese personification fabricated of compressed mounds of minute crystals". If you are like most people, these two phrases just went right over your head. We will give you a hint, these are two common Christmas songs. The first phrase refers to "Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer", and the second one is "Frosty the Snowman". Notice that in both of these cases, the made-up title with all the polysyllabic words is far less clear than the commonly known one. While you are probably unlikely to deliberately distort the clarity of your speech by choosing such outlandish words to express simple thoughts, the point we are illustrating is that clear language makes a big difference in how well a message can be understood.

Another common mistake among new public speakers is thinking that more words are more impressive. In fact, the opposite is true. When people ramble on and on without actually making a point, audiences become bored and distracted. To avoid this problem, we recommend word economy , or the use of only those words necessary to accurately express your idea. If the fundamental idea you are trying to say is, "that stinks", then saying something like "while the overall outcome may be undesirable and definitely not recommended" becomes overkill. We do have one caveat here: you want to make sure that your language is not so basic that it turns off your audience. If you are speaking to adults and use vocabulary appropriate for school children, you will end up offending your audience. So while economy is definitely important, you do not want to become so overly basic that you are perceived as "talking down" to your audience.

Obscenity , or indecent language, consists of curse words or pornographic references. While it may be fun to use obscene language in casual conversations with your friends, we cannot recommend using obscene language while delivering a speech. Even if you are giving a speech related to an obscene word, you must be careful with your use of the word itself. Whether we agree with societal perceptions of obscenity, going out of our way to use obscenity will end up focusing the audience on the obscenity and not on our message.

Obscure Language/Jargon

Obscure language and jargon are two terms that closely relate to each other. Obscure language refers to language choices that are not typically understood or known by most of your audience. Imagine you are listening to a speech and the speaker says, "Today I have given you a plethora of ideas for greening your workplace". While you may think the word "plethora" is commonly known, we can assure you that many people have no idea that plethora means many or an abundance of something.

Similarly, you may think most people know what it means to "green" a workplace, but in fact many people do not know that it means to make the workplace more environmentally friendly, or to reduce its impact on the environment. In the case of this example, plethora simply means the speaker has given many ideas for greening the workplace. You can still use the word "plethora", but you should include a definition so that you are sure all of your audience will understand.

Jargon , on the other hand, refers to language that is commonly used by a highly specialized group, trade, or profession. For example there is legal jargon, or the language commonly used by and understood by lawyers. There is also medical jargon, or the language commonly used by and understood by health care practitioners. Every group, trade, or profession will have its own specific jargon. The problem that occurs for many speakers is not realizing that jargon is group, trade, or profession specific and not universal. One common form of jargon is the acronym, a word formed by taking the first letters or groups of letters of words, such as NASDAQ (National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations), PET (positron emission tomography) scan, or IHOP (International House of Pancakes).

Another form of jargon is initialism , formed by pronouncing the initials rather than the name of an organization or other entity. For example, CDC stands for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, fMRI stands for Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging, and B of A stands for Bank of America. In political discussions, you may come across various CFRs, or Codes of Federal Regulations. If you are going to use a specific acronym or initialism within your speech, you need to explain it the first time you use it. For example, you could say,

According to the United States Code of Federal Regulations, or CFR, employment discrimination in the Department of Homeland Security is not allowed based on biological sex, religion, sexual orientation, or race. Furthermore, the US CFR does not permit discrimination in receiving contracts based on biological sex, religion, sexual orientation, or race.

By defining the jargon upon first mention, we are subsequently able to use the jargon because we can be certain the audience now understands the term.

Power is an individual's ability to influence another person to think or behave in a manner the other person would not have otherwise done. DeVito examined how language can be used to help people gain power over others or lose power over othersDeVito, J. A. (2009). The interpersonal communication book (12th ed.). Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon.. Table 3 "Powerful and Powerless Language" provides examples of both powerful language and powerless language a speaker can use during a speech. Powerless language should generally be avoided in public speaking because it can damage audience perceptions of the speaker's credibility.

Table 3 Powerful and Powerless Language

The last important aspect of language is variety , or a speaker's ability to use and implement a range of different language choices. In many ways, variety encompasses all the characteristics of language previously discussed in this chapter. Often speakers find one language device and then beat it into the ground like a railroad spike. Unfortunately, when a speaker starts using the same language device too often, the language device will start to lose the power that it may have had. For this reason, we recommend that you always think about the language you plan on using in a speech and make sure that you use a range of language choices.

• Public speakers need to make sure that they are very aware of their language. Six common language issues that impact public speakers are clarity, economy, obscenity, obscure language/jargon, power, and variety.
• When public speakers prepare their speeches, they need to make sure that their speeches contain clear language, use as few words as possible to get their point across, avoid obscenity, be careful with obscure language/jargon, use powerful language, and include variety.

• Constructed scripts
• Multilingual Pages

Differences between writing and speech

Written and spoken language differ in many ways. However some forms of writing are closer to speech than others, and vice versa. Below are some of the ways in which these two forms of language differ:

Writing is usually permanent and written texts cannot usually be changed once they have been printed/written out.

Speech is usually transient, unless recorded, and speakers can correct themselves and change their utterances as they go along.

A written text can communicate across time and space for as long as the particular language and writing system is still understood.

Speech is usually used for immediate interactions.

Written language tends to be more complex and intricate than speech with longer sentences and many subordinate clauses. The punctuation and layout of written texts also have no spoken equivalent. However some forms of written language, such as instant messages and email, are closer to spoken language.

Spoken language tends to be full of repetitions, incomplete sentences, corrections and interruptions, with the exception of formal speeches and other scripted forms of speech, such as news reports and scripts for plays and films.

Writers receive no immediate feedback from their readers, except in computer-based communication. Therefore they cannot rely on context to clarify things so there is more need to explain things clearly and unambiguously than in speech, except in written correspondence between people who know one another well.

Speech is usually a dynamic interaction between two or more people. Context and shared knowledge play a major role, so it is possible to leave much unsaid or indirectly implied.

Writers can make use of punctuation, headings, layout, colours and other graphical effects in their written texts. Such things are not available in speech

Speech can use timing, tone, volume, and timbre to add emotional context.

Written material can be read repeatedly and closely analysed, and notes can be made on the writing surface. Only recorded speech can be used in this way.

Some grammatical constructions are only used in writing, as are some kinds of vocabulary, such as some complex chemical and legal terms.

Some types of vocabulary are used only or mainly in speech. These include slang expressions, and tags like y'know , like , etc.

Writing systems : Abjads | Alphabets | Abugidas | Syllabaries | Semanto-phonetic scripts | Undeciphered scripts | Alternative scripts | Constructed scripts | Fictional scripts | Magical scripts | Index (A-Z) | Index (by direction) | Index (by language) | Index (by continent) | What is writing? | Types of writing system | Differences between writing and speech | Language and Writing Statistics | Languages

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Verbal vs. Oral – What’s the Difference?

Home » Verbal vs. Oral – What’s the Difference?

In many contexts, oral and verbal seem to be synonymous. Sometimes they are: you have probably heard people ask for both oral and verbal reports, meaning they want you to say something to them out loud .

When we look more closely at the meanings of oral and verbal , though, we discover a few nuances that make choosing one of these words a bit more difficult.

What is the Difference Between Verbal and Oral?

In this post, I will compare verbal vs. oral and use each word in several example sentences that show its use in proper context.

I will also show you a mnemonic device that makes it easy to remember whether verbal or oral is the proper adjective to describe something.

When to Use Verbal

For example, verbal abuse does not necessarily mean spoken abuse . It could be abuse from a letter, email, newspaper article, etc .

In everyday use, however, verbal is usually used to refer to spoken language. Generally speaking, when people say verbal praise , they mean praise that someone has said out loud. Likewise, verbal consent is consent that you give by speaking, rather than signing a consent form.

Here are a few examples,

• Children learn to understand and use verbal language at a very early age.
• Verbal consent is usually sufficient to begin treatment in urgent situations, but can become problematic if legal issues arise.

The narrow use of the word to mean only speech or spoken words is somewhat problematic, however.

Since verbal means related to words , not related to spoken words , verbal can be applied properly to any context where words are used.

As I already mentioned, verbal abuse is not limited to spoken words. The important takeaway is that verbal doesn’t exclusively mean spoke . It can also refer to written words.

When to Use Oral

Oral has a secondary meaning that overlaps with verbal : it describes information communicated through the spoken word. Oral is more specific than verbal , since written language is not communicated via the mouth. Thus, oral only refers to spoken language.

Therefore, oral instructions are instructions given by one person through another via speech. A culture with a rich oral tradition may pass down its history and stories via the spoken word, even if they are not written down. An oral examination is a test wherein a person speaks answers, rather than writing them.

Here are some example sentences,

• When Kirsten broke her arm, she was allowed to take oral tests instead of written tests, with the rest of the class.
• James had an oral disease that infected his gums and caused him to bleed profusely from the mouth.

As you can see, oral has a much more restrictive use that verbal . While verbal can mean spoken or written words , oral can only mean spoken words .

Trick to Remember the Difference

• Oral can only describe spoken language.
• Verbal usually describes spoken language, but could (and should) refer to written language, as well.

Oral vs. Verbal Check: Since oral and spoken both contain the letter O , you can easily remember to use oral when referring to spoken language.

Is it oral or verbal? Oral and verbal are adjectives that mean related to the mouth and related to words , respectively.

They are both used to refer to spoken language, and while both are appropriate, oral is more specific, and thus a better choice in many contexts.

Want to create or adapt books like this? Learn more about how Pressbooks supports open publishing practices.

Chapter 5: Using Language

This chapter is adapted from  Stand up, Speak out: The Practice and Ethics of Public Speaking ,  CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 .

What is the importance of language in my speech?

Now that you have a good grasp of how you can help your audience to listen to your speech, let’s see how your language choice influences their listening skills as well.

The words we choose are symbols for the meanings we wish to convey. I wish I could open your head and pour in my meanings. It would be so much easier and more accurate than trying to find a word that delivers the exact same meaning I have in my mind. Check out this PowerPoint to see what I’m talking about. It is foundational to helping you choose your words for your speeches.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tEgLswzKs5w

Perception Lecture Source , by Communication 1020 Videso , Standard YouTube License. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tEgLswzKs5w

Ask any professional speaker or speech writer, and they will tell you that language matters. For example, below are some of the most important and memorable lines in American history from speeches given by American presidents:

It is true that you may fool all the people some of the time; you can even fool some of the people all the time; but you can’t fool all of the people all the time– Abraham Lincoln (McClure, 1904).

Speak softly and carry a big stick–Theodore Roosevelt (Roosevelt, 1901).

The only thing we have to fear is fear itself–Franklin Delano Roosevelt (Roosevelt, 1933).

Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country–John F. Kennedy (Kennedy, 1961).

We lose ourselves when we compromise the very ideals that we fight to defend. And we honor those ideals by upholding them not when it’s easy, but when it is hard–Barack Obama (Obama, 2009).

You don’t have to be a president or a famous speaker to use language effectively. So, in this chapter, we’re going to explore the importance of language. First, we will discuss the difference between oral and written language, then we will talk about some basic guidelines for using language, and lastly, we’ll look at six key language elements.

What is the difference between oral and written language?

When we use the word language, we are referring to the words you choose to use in your speech—so by definition, our focus is on spoken language. Spoken language has always existed prior to written language. Wrench, McCroskey, and Richmond suggest that if you think about humans’ language history as a twelve-inch ruler, written language or recorded language has only existed for the “last quarter of an inch” (Wrench, et al., 2008). Furthermore, of the more than six thousand languages that are spoken around the world today, only a minority actually use a written alphabet (Lewis, 2009). To help us understand the importance of language, we will first look at language’s basic functions and then delve into the differences between oral and written language.

Basic Functions of Language

Language is any formal system of gestures, signs, sounds, and symbols used or conceived as a means of communicating thought. As mentioned above, there are over six thousand language schemes currently used around the world. Mandarin is the language spoken by the most people on the planet; other widely spoken languages are English, Spanish, and Arabic (Lewis, 2009). Language is ultimately important because it is the primary means through which humans have the ability to communicate and interact with one another. Some linguists go so far as to suggest that acquiring language skills is the primary advancement that enabled our prehistoric ancestors to flourish and succeed over other hominid species (Mayell, 2003).

In today’s world, effective language use helps us in our interpersonal relationships at home and at work and will improve your ability to be an effective public speaker. Because language is an important aspect of public speaking that many students don’t spend enough time developing, we encourage you to take advantage of this chapter.

One of the first components necessary for understanding language is to understand how we assign meaning to words. Words consist of oral sounds and written shapes that have agreed-upon meanings based in concepts, ideas, and memories. When we write the word blue, we may be referring to a portion of the visual spectrum dominated by energy with a wavelength of roughly 440–490 nanometers. You could also say that the color in question is an equal mixture of both red and green light. While both are technically correct, we’re pretty sure that neither of these definitions is how you thought about the word. When hearing the word blue, you may have thought of your favorite color, the color of the sky on a spring day, or the color of a really ugly car you saw in the parking lot. When you think about language, be aware that there are two different meaning types to consider: denotative and connotative.

Denotative Meaning

Denotative meaning is the specific meaning associated with a word—sometimes referred to as the dictionary definition. The definitions provided above for the word blue are examples that might be found in a dictionary. The first dictionary was written by Robert Cawdry in 1604 and was called Table Alphabeticall . This English language dictionary consisted of three thousand commonly spoken English words. Today, the Oxford English Dictionary contains more than 200,000 words (Oxford University Press, 2011).

Connotative Meaning

Connotative meaning is the idea suggested by or associated with a word. In addition to the examples above, the word blue can evoke many other ideas:

• State of depression—feeling blue.
• Indicates winning—a blue ribbon.
• Side during the Civil War—blues vs. grays.
• Sudden event—out of the blue.

We also associate the color blue with the sky and the ocean. Maybe your school colors or your archrival’s colors include blue. There are also various forms of blue: aquamarine, baby blue, navy blue, royal blue, and so on.

Some miscommunication can occur over denotative meanings. For example, imagine receiving a flyer for a tennis center open house. The center’s expressed goal is to introduce children to the game of tennis. At the bottom of the flyer, the language used encourages people “to bring their own racquets if they have them,” but “a limited number of racquets will be available.” The final phrase’s denotative meaning could be interpreted in multiple ways: some parents attending the event may perceive it to mean that loaner racquets will be available to use during the open house event, when really the tennis court people intended it to mean that parents could purchase racquets onsite. The confusion over the denotative meaning could hurt the tennis center, as some parents could feel they had been misled by the flyer and may leave the event!

Although denotatively based misunderstandings such as in the example indeed happen, most communication misunderstandings occur because of differing connotative meanings. For example, you may be trying to persuade your audience to support public funding for a new professional football stadium in your city, but if mentioning the team or owner’s name creates negative connotations for the audience, you will not be very persuasive. The potential for misunderstanding connotative meaning is an additional reason why audience analysis, discussed earlier in this book, is critically important. By conducting effective audience analysis, you know in advance how your audience might respond to your words and ideas’ connotations. Connotative meanings can not only differ between individuals interacting at the same time but also differ greatly across time periods and cultures. Ultimately, speakers should attempt to have a working knowledge of how their audiences could potentially interpret words and ideas to minimize the chance of miscommunication.

Twelve Ways Oral and Written Language Differ

A second important aspect to understand about language is that oral language used in public speaking and written language used for texts do not function the same way. Try a brief experiment. Take a textbook, maybe even this one, and read it out loud. When the text is read aloud, does it sound conversational? Probably not. Written language uses larger vocabulary and is more formal. Public speaking, on the other hand, should sound like a conversation. McCroskey, Wrench, and Richmond highlight the following twelve characteristics that oral language uses:

• A smaller variety of words.
• Words with fewer syllables.
• Shorter sentences.
• More self-reference words: I, me, mine.
• Fewer quantifying terms or precise numerical words.
• More pseudo-quantifying terms: many, few, some .
• More extreme and superlative words: none, all, every, always, never.
• More qualifying statements: clauses beginning with unless and except .
• More repetition of words and syllables.
• More contractions.
• More interjections: “Wow!,” “Really?,” “No!,” “You’re kidding!”.
• More colloquial and nonstandard words (McCroskey, et al., 2003).

The differences between oral and written communication exist primarily because people listen to and read information differently. First, when you read information, if you don’t grasp content the first time, you have the ability to reread a section. When we are listening to information, we do not have the ability to “rewind” life and relisten to the information. Second, when you read information, if you do not understand a concept, you can look up the concept in a dictionary or online and gain the knowledge easily. However, we do not always have easy access to the Internet to look up concepts that we don’t understand. Therefore, oral communication should be simple enough to be easily understood in the moment, by a specific audience, without additional study or information.

How can I use language effectively in my speech?

When considering how to use language effectively in your speech, consider the degree to which the language is appropriate, vivid, inclusive, and familiar. The next section defines each of these language aspects and discusses why each is important in public speaking.

Use Appropriate Language

In life, we behave in ways appropriate for the circumstances. The same applies to the language we use. Appropriateness is one of the first concepts a speechmaker needs to think about when considering what language to use. By appropriate, we mean whether the language is suitable or fitting for the speaker, the audience, the speaking context, and the topic.

Appropriate for the Speaker

One of the first questions to ask yourself is whether your speech’s language fits with your own speaking pattern. Not all language choices are appropriate for all speakers. The language you select should be suitable for you, not someone else. If you’re a first-year college student, there’s no need to force yourself to sound like an astrophysicist even if you are giving a speech on new planets. One of the biggest mistakes novice speakers make is thinking that they have to use million-dollar words because it makes them sound smarter. Actually, million-dollar words don’t tend to function well in oral communication to begin with, so using them will probably make you uncomfortable. Also, it may be difficult for the audience to understand your words’ nuances and can increase the risk of denotative or connotative misunderstandings.

Appropriate for the Audience

The second question to ask is whether the language you choose is appropriate for your specific audience. Let’s say that you’re an engineering student. If you’re giving a presentation to an engineering class, you can use language that other engineering students will know. On the other hand, if you use engineering vocabulary in a public speaking class, many audience members will not understand you. As another example, if you are speaking about the Great Depression to a young-adult audience, you can’t assume they will know the meaning of terms like “New Deal” and “WPA,” which would be familiar to a senior-citizen audience. In this text’s other chapters, we explain the importance of audience analysis—once again, audience analysis is a key factor to consider when choosing your speech’s language.

Appropriate for the Context

The third question to ask about appropriateness is whether the language you use is suitable or fitting for the context itself. The language you employ if you’re addressing an auditorium full of high school students will differ from the language you employ addressing a hotel ballroom full of business people. If you’re giving a speech at an outdoor rally, you cannot use the same language you would use in a classroom. Recall that the speaking context includes the occasion, the time of day, the audiences’ mood, physical location, and other factors. Take the entire speaking context into consideration when you make language choices for your speech.

Appropriate for the Topic

The fourth and final question to ask is whether the language is appropriate for your specific topic. If you are speaking about The Walt Disney Company’s early years, would you refer to Walt Disney as a “thaumaturgic” individual, i.e., one who works wonders or miracles? While the word thaumaturgic may be accurate, is it the most appropriate for the topic at hand? As another example, if your speech topic is about the dual residence model of string theory, it makes sense to expect that you will use more sophisticated language than if your topic is about a basic introduction to the physics of, say, sound or light waves.

Use Vivid Language

After appropriateness, the second main guideline for language choice is to use vivid language. Vivid language helps your listeners create strong, distinct, clear, and memorable mental images. Good vivid language helps your audience truly understand and imagine what you are saying. Two common ways to create a more vivid speech is by using imagery and rhythm.

Imagery is using language to represent objects, actions, or ideas. The goal of imagery is to help an audience member create a mental picture of what a speaker is saying. A speaker who uses imagery successfully will tap into one or more of the audience’s five basic senses: hearing, taste, touch, smell, and sight. Three common tools of imagery are concreteness, simile, and metaphor.

Concreteness

When we use language that is concrete, we help our audience see specific realities or actual instances instead of abstract theories and ideas. The goal of concreteness is to help you, as a speaker, show your audience something instead of just telling them. Imagine you’ve decided to give a speech on the importance of freedom. You could easily stand up and talk about the philosophical work of Rudolf Steiner, who divided the ideas of freedom into freedom of thought and freedom of action. If you’re like us, even reading that sentence can make you want to go to sleep. Instead of defining what those terms mean and discussing Steiner’s philosophical merits, you could use real examples in which people’s freedom to think or freedom to behave has been stifled. For example, you could talk about how Afghani women under Taliban rule have been denied access to education, and how those seeking education have risked public flogging and even execution (Iacopino & Rasekh, 1998). You could further illustrate how Afghani women under the Taliban are forced to adhere to rigid interpretations of Islamic law that functionally limit their behavior. These examples illustrate Steiner’s philosophy, make your language more concrete, and are easier to remember. Ultimately, the goal of concreteness is to show an audience something instead of talking about it abstractly.

The second form of imagery is simile. As you probably learned in English courses, a simile is a figure of speech in which two unlike things are explicitly compared. Both aspects being compared remain separate within the comparison. The following are some examples:

• The thunderous applause was like a party among the gods.
• After the revelation, she was as angry as a raccoon caught in a cage.
• Love is like a battlefield.

When we look at these two examples, you’ll see that two words have been italicized: like and as . All similes contain either like or as within the comparison. Speakers use similes to help an audience understand a specific characteristic being described within the speech. In the first example, we are connecting the type of applause being heard to something supernatural, so we can imagine that the applause was huge and enormous. Now, think how you would envision the event if the simile likened the applause to a mime convention—your mental picture changes dramatically, doesn’t it?

To effectively use similes within your speech, first look for instances where you find yourself using the words like or as—for example, “His breath smelled like a fishing boat on a hot summer day.” Second, when you find situations where you are comparing two things using like or as, examine what it is that you are actually comparing. For example, maybe you’re comparing someone’s breath to the odor of a fishing vessel. Lastly, once you see what two ideas you are comparing, check the mental picture for yourself. Are you getting the mental image you desire? Is the image too strong? Is the image too weak? You can always alter the image to make it stronger or weaker depending on what your aim is.

The other commonly used form of imagery is the metaphor or a figure of speech. Metaphor is when a term or phrase is applied to something in a nonliteral way to suggest a resemblance. One of the comparison items is said to be the other, even though this is realistically not possible. Let’s look at a few examples:

• Love is a battlefield .
• Upon hearing the charges, the accused clammed up and refused to speak without a lawyer.
• Every year, a new crop of activists is born .

In these examples, the comparison word has been italicized. Let’s think through each example. In the first one, the comparison is the same as one of our simile examples except that the word like is omitted—instead of being like a battlefield, the metaphor states that love is a battlefield, and it is understood that the speaker does not mean the comparison literally. In the second example, the accused clams up , which means that the accused refused to talk in the same way a clam shell is closed. In the third example, we refer to activists as crops that arise anew with each growing season, and we use born figuratively to indicate that they come into being—even though it is understood that they are not newborn infants at the time when they become activists.

To use a metaphor effectively, first determine what you are trying to describe. For example, maybe you are talking about a college catalog that offers various courses. Second, identify what it is that you want to say about the object you are trying to describe. Depending on whether you want your audience to think of the catalog as good or bad, you’ll use different words to describe it. Lastly, identify the other object you want to compare the first one to, which should mirror the intentions in the second step. Let’s look at two possible metaphors:

• Students groped their way through the catalog’s maze of courses.
• Students feasted on the catalog’s abundant courses.

While both of these examples evoke comparisons with the course catalog, the first example is clearly more negative and the second is more positive.

One mistake people make in using metaphors is to make two incompatible comparisons in the same sentence or line of thought. Here is an example:

• “That’s awfully thin gruel for the right wing to hang their hats on” (Nordquist, 2009).

This is known as a mixed metaphor, and it often has an incongruous or even hilarious effect. Unless you are aiming to entertain your audience with language’s fractured use, be careful to avoid mixed metaphors.

Our second guideline for effective speech language is to use rhythm, which makes most people think about music. What they may not realize is that language is inherently musical—at least it can be. Rhythm refers to the patterned, recurring movement of sound or speech. Whether someone is striking a drum with a stick or speaking in front of a group, both are creating rhythm. Think about your favorite public speaker. If you analyze his or her speaking pattern, you’ll notice that there is a certain cadence to the speech. While much of this cadence is a result of the nonverbal components of speaking, some of the cadence comes from the chosen language as well. Rhythm is an important aspect of human communication. Let’s examine four types of rhythmic language: parallelism, repetition, alliteration, and assonance.

Parallelism

When listing items in a sequence, audiences will respond more strongly when those ideas are presented in a grammatically parallel fashion, which is called parallelism. For example, look at the following two examples and determine which one sounds better to you:

• Give me liberty, or I’d rather die.
• Give me liberty, or give me death.

Technically, you’re saying the same thing in both, but the second sentence has rhythm due to the parallel construction of the phrase, give me. The lack of parallelism in the first example makes the sentence sound disjointed and ineffective.

As we mentioned earlier in this chapter, repeating words and syllables is one of the major differences between oral and written language. For example, in persuasive speechmaking, speakers need to repeat the core message consistently. Repetition as a linguistic device is designed to help audiences become familiar with a short piece of the speech, as they hear it over and over again. By repeating a phrase during a speech, you create a specific rhythm. Probably the most famous and memorable use of repetition is Martin Luther King Jr.’s use of “I have a dream” in his speech at the Lincoln Memorial, August, 1963, during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. In that speech, King repeated the phrase “I have a dream” eight times, to great effect.

Alliteration

Another type of rhythmic language is alliteration, or repeating two or more words in a series that begin with the same consonant. In the Harry Potter novels, the author uses alliteration to name the four wizards who founded Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry: Godric Gryffindor, Helga Hufflepuff, Rowena Ravenclaw, and Salazar Slytherin. There are two basic types of alliteration: immediate juxtaposition and nonimmediate juxtaposition. Immediate juxtaposition occurs when the consonants clearly follow one after the other—as we see in the Harry Potter example. Nonimmediate juxtaposition occurs when the consonants are repeated in nonadjacent words, for example, “It is the p oison that we must p urge from our p olitics, the wall that we must tear down before the hour grows too late.” (Obama, 2008). Sometimes you can actually use examples of both immediate and nonimmediate juxtaposition within a single speech. The following example is from Bill Clinton’s acceptance speech at the 1992 Democratic National Convention: “Somewhere at this very moment, a child is b eing b orn in America. Let it b e our cause to give that child a h appy h ome, a h ealthy family, and a h opeful future” (Clinton, 2005).

Assonance is similar to alliteration, but instead of relying on consonants, assonance gets its rhythm from repeating the same vowel sounds with different consonants in the stressed syllables. The phrase “how now brown cow,” which elocution students traditionally use to learn to pronounce rounded vowel sounds, is an example of assonance. While rhymes like “free as a breeze,” “mad as a hatter,” and “no pain, no gain” are examples of assonance, speakers should be wary of relying on assonance because when it is overused it can quickly turn into bad poetry.

Use Inclusive Language

Language can either inspire your listeners or turn them off very quickly. One of the fastest ways to alienate an audience is by using exclusive language. Instead, use inclusive language, which is language that avoids placing any one group of people above or below another group or groups. Let’s look at some common problem areas related to language regarding gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and disabilities.

Gender-Specific Language

The first common form of exclusive language is that which privileges one of the sexes over the other and includes three common issues: using he as generic, using man to mean all humans, and gender-typing jobs.

The generic he happens when a speaker labels all people within a group as he , when in reality there is a mixed-sex group involved. Consider the statement, “Every morning, when an officer of the law puts on his badge, he risks his life to serve and protect his fellow citizens.” In this case, we have a police officer who is labeled as male four different times in one sentence. Obviously, both male and female police officers risk their lives when they put on their badges. A better way to word the sentence would be, “Every morning, when law officers put on their badges, they risk their lives to serve and protect their fellow citizens.” Notice that in the nongeneric-he sentence, we made the subject plural—officers, and used the neutral pronouns they and their to avoid the generic he.

Traditionally, English speakers have used terms like man , mankind , and in casual contexts, guys when referring to both females and males. In the twentieth century’s second half, as society became more aware of language gender bias, organizations like the National Council of Teachers of English developed guidelines for nonsexist language (National Council of Teachers of English, 2002). For example, instead of using the word man, you could refer to the human race. Instead of saying, “hey, guys,” you could say, “OK, everyone.” By using gender-fair language you convey your meaning just as well, and you won’t risk alienating half your audience.

Gender-Typed Jobs

Another way that speakers alienate an audience is by using exclusive language that gender-types job titles. It is not unusual for people to assume, for example, that doctors are male and nurses are female. As a result, they may say, “She is a woman doctor,” or “He is a male nurse” when mentioning someone’s occupation, perhaps not realizing that the statements “she is a doctor” and “he is a nurse” already informs the listener of that person’s sex. Also, speakers sometimes use a gender-specific pronoun to refer to an occupation that has both males and females. See the Gender-Type Jobs list for some common, exclusive gender-specific job titles and more inclusive job titles.

Gender-Type Jobs

Ethnic Identity

Another type of exclusive language relates to categories used to highlight an individual’s ethnic identity. Ethnic identity refers to a group that an individual identifies with based on a common culture. For example, within the United States, we have numerous ethnic groups, including Italian American, Irish American, Japanese American, Vietnamese American, Cuban American, and Mexican American. Avoid statements that refer to a person’s ethnicity, such as “The committee is made up of four women and a Vietnamese man.” Instead say, “The committee is made up of four women and a man” or, if race and ethnicity are central to the discussion, you could say, “The committee is made up of three European American women, an Israeli American woman, a Brazilian American woman, and a Vietnamese American man.” In recent years, the trend is to avoid broad terms like Asians and Hispanics because these terms are not considered precise labels for the groups they actually represent. If you want to be safe, the best thing you can do is ask a couple of people who belong to an ethnic group how they prefer to label themselves.

Sexual Orientation

Another type of exclusive language is referred to as heterosexism. Heterosexism occurs when a speaker presumes that everyone in an audience is heterosexual or that opposite-sex relationships are the only norm. For example, a speaker might begin a speech by saying, “I am going to talk about the legal obligations you will have with your future husband or wife.” While this speech starts with the notion that everyone plans on getting married, which isn’t the case, it also assumes that everyone will label their significant others as either husbands or wives. Although, some members of the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender/transexual community will use these terms, others prefer more gender-neutral terms like spouse and partner. Moreover, legal obligations for same-sex couples may be very different from those for heterosexual couples. Notice also that we have used the phrase, members of the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender/transexual community, instead of the more clinical-sounding term, homosexual.

The last category of exclusive versus inclusive language that causes problems for some speakers relates to individuals with physical or mental disabilities. See how the Inclusive Language for Disabilities list provides some other examples of exclusive versus inclusive language.

Inclusive Language for Disabilities

Use Familiar Language

The last category related to using appropriate language simply asks you to use language that is familiar both to yourself and to your audience. If you are not comfortable with the language you are using, then you are going to be more nervous speaking, which will definitely have an impact on how your audience receives your speech. You may have a hard time speaking genuinely and sincerely if you use unfamiliar language, and this can impair your credibility. Furthermore, you want to make sure that the language you are using is familiar to your audience. If your audience cannot understand what you are saying, you will not deliver an effective speech.

What are the six important language elements for public speakers?

Language choice is one of the most important aspects of anyone’s public speaking performance and will determine how an audience experiences the speech. To help you think through your language choices, we are going to talk about six important language elements and how they affect audiences’ perceptions.

The first important language element is clarity, which means to make sure the audience understands a speaker’s ideas in the way the speaker intended. While language, or verbal communication, is only one channel we use to transmit information, it can lend itself to numerous problems. For example, as discussed earlier, if people have different connotative definitions for words, the audience can miss the spearer’s intended meaning.

Imagine you’re listening to a speaker talking, and he or she uses the phrase, “older female relative who became aerodynamic venison road kill,” or “obese personification fabricated of compressed mounds of minute crystals.” If you’re like most people, these two phrases just went right over your head. We’ll give you a hint, these are two common Christmas songs. The first phrase refers to “Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer,” and the second one is “Frosty the Snowman.” Notice that in both cases, the made-up title with all the polysyllabic words is far less clear than the commonly known one. While you are probably unlikely to deliberately distort your speech’s clarity by choosing such outlandish words to express simple thoughts, the point we are illustrating is that clear language makes a big difference in how well a message is understood.

The next important language element is economy, which means that less is best. Another common mistake among new public speakers is thinking that more words are more impressive. In fact, the opposite is true. When people ramble on and on without actually making a point, audiences become bored and distracted. To avoid this problem, we recommend word economy: use only those words necessary to accurately express your idea. If the fundamental idea you are trying to say is, “that stinks,” but you actually say “while the overall outcome may be undesirable and definitely not recommended,” that is overkill. We do have one caveat here: you want to make sure that your language isn’t so basic that it turns off your audience. If you are speaking to adults and use vocabulary appropriate for school children, you’ll end up offending your audience. So, while economy is definitely important, you don’t want to become so overly basic that you are perceived as “talking down” to your audience.

The third important language element is obscenity, or indecent language, which consists of curse words or pornographic references. While it may be fun to use obscene language in casual conversations with your friends, we cannot recommend using obscene language while delivering a speech. Even if you’re giving a speech related to an obscene word, you must be careful how you use the word itself. Whether we agree with societal perceptions of obscenity, going out of our way to use obscenity will end up focusing the audience on the obscenity and not on our message.

Obscure Language/Jargon

The fourth language element relates to using obscure language or jargon, which refers to special words or expressions that are used by a particular profession or group and are difficult for others to understand. If you must use jargon or obscure language, define the words upon first mention, which allows you to subsequently use the jargon or words in your speech because you can be certain the audience now understands the term.

Obscure language and jargon are two terms that closely relate to each other. Obscure language refers to language choices that are not typically understood or known by most of your audience. Imagine you’re listening to a speech and the speaker says, “Today, I’ve given you a plethora of ideas for greening your workplace.” While you may think the word plethora is commonly known, we can assure you that many people have no idea that plethora means many or an abundance of something. Similarly, you may think most people know what it means to “green” a workplace, but in fact many people do not know that it means to make the workplace more environmentally friendly or to reduce its environmental impact. In this example, plethora simply means the speaker has given many ideas for greening the workplace. You can still use the word plethora, but you should include a definition so that you’re sure your audience will understand.

Jargon, on the other hand, refers to language that is commonly used by a highly specialized group, trade, or profession. For example, legal jargon is used by lawyers and medical jargon is used by health care practitioners. The problem is that many speakers do not realize that jargon is group, trade, or profession specific and not used universally.

One common form of jargon is the acronym, a word formed by taking the first letters or groups of letters of words, such as NASDAQ—National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations, PET—positron emission tomography scan, or IHOP—International House of Pancakes. Another form of jargon is initialism, formed by pronouncing the initials rather than the name of an organization or other entity. For example, CDC—the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, fMRI—Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging, and B of A—Bank of America. In political discussions, you may come across various CFRs, or Codes of Federal Regulations. If you are going to use a specific acronym or initialism within your speech, you need to explain it the first time you use it. For example, you could say, “According to the United States Code of Federal Regulations, or CFR, employment discrimination in the Department of Homeland Security is not allowed based on biological sex, religion, sexual orientation, or race.” Furthermore, the US CFR does not permit discrimination in receiving contracts based on biological sex, religion, sexual orientation, or race

The fifth language element is power, which is defined as an individual’s ability to influence another person to think or behave in a manner the other person would not have otherwise done. DeVito examines how language can be used to help people gain power over others or lose power over others (DeVito, 2009). The Powerful and Powerless Language list provides examples of powerful and powerless language that speakers can use during a speech. Powerless language should generally be avoided in public speaking because it can damage the speaker’s credibility.

Powerful and Powerless Language

The last important language element is variety, or a speaker’s ability to use and implement a range of different language choices. In many ways, variety encompasses all the characteristics of language previously discussed in this chapter. Often, speakers find one language device and then beat it into the ground like a railroad spike. Unfortunately, when a speaker starts using the same language device too often, the language device will start to lose the power that it may have had. For this reason, we recommend that you always think about the language you plan on using in a speech and make sure that you use a range of language choices.

Kennedy, J. F. (1961, January 20). Inaugural address. Quoted in Bartlett, J. (1992). Bartlett’s familiar quotations (J. Kaplan, Ed.) (16th ed.). Boston, MA: Little, Brown, & Company, p. 741.

University of Minnesota. (2011).   Stand up, Speak out: The Practice and Ethics of Public Speaking.  University of Minnesota Libraries Publishing.  https://open.lib.umn.edu/publicspeaking/ . CC BY-SA 4.0.

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Nofrills. (2005, April 25). Language variety on cadbury’s choc [Image]. Flickr. https://www.flickr.com/photos/nofrills/10895361

Public Speaking Copyright © 2022 by Sarah Billington and Shirene McKay is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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Linguistics: Between Orality and Writing

• First Online: 22 August 2022

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• Harvey J. Graff 2  

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In the beginning, there was the Word. The word was spoken. Our knowledge of this comes through writing. It also comes through centuries of translation and conflicting interpretations: a set of relationships that plagues understanding. We have a long legacy of formulaic divides surrounding “ from oral to written or literate” that assume a historical, evolutionary trajectory. The linguistic bases of literacy studies swing from presumption of antecedent to subsequent.

The basic study of language divides over the primacy and determinative influence of either the oral or the written. Linguistics’ roots in religion and foundations in philology are not appreciated.. This is part of their neglect—or the presumption—of history, and of their acceptance of the primacy of a foundational shift from oral to written.

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I first used this rhetorical formulation in Legacies of Literacy (1987). The similarity between this formulation and the opening of the first chapter in Jack Goody’s Logic of Writing ( 1986 ) is entirely coincidental. Yet the differences between our interpretations of this logocentric view are consequential. While I immediately underscore the principal issues and sources of confusion in understanding literacy, Goody turns a complex historical transformation into a formula.

Brockmeier’s version of his “episteme” is deeply ahistorical; none of these formulations pays attention to context. Claims of its novelty are self-serving. Brockmeier and Olson’s use of evidence is flawed. They confuse and conflate social, psychological, and intellectual issues; the general and specific; and literacy and writing. For one critique of Olson and his presumptions, see Halverson, “Olson on literacy” ( 1991 ); Halverson, “Goody and the implosion of the literacy thesis” ( 1992 ).

Brockmeier and Olson’s “Literacy episteme” ( 2009 , 9), declares the existence of a “field” after 1960, but that is not the same as an episteme.

For an interesting perspective, included in one of the testaments to the literacy episteme that, looking to the “future of writing” rather than the past and present, actually argues somewhat contradictorily against part of the accepted narrative, see Harris, “Literacy and the future of writing” ( 2002 ). See also Cook-Gumperz and Gumperz, “From oral to written culture” ( 1981 ), Cook-Gumperz, Social construction , 1986 .

In “Are there linguistic consequences of literacy?” Biber argues: “For example, researchers such as O’Donnell (1974), Olson (1977), and Chafe (1982), argued that written language generally differs from speech in being more structurally complex, elaborated, and/or explicit” (Biber 2009 , 75).

See the classic work of Basil Bernstein, Dell Hymes, Erving Goffman, William Labov, and their students. For introductions, see Bauman and Briggs, “Poetics and performance” ( 1990 ); Goffman, Forms of Talk ( 1981 ); Hymes, “Introduction: Toward ethnographies of communication” ( 1964b ); Koerner, “Toward a history of modern sociolinguistics” ( 1991 ); Labov, Sociolinguistic patterns ( 1972 ); Shuy, “Brief history of American sociolinguistics,” 1990 ; Szwed, “Ethnography of literacy” ( 1981 ).

Finnegan quotes then Director-General of UNESCO, Réné Maheu, speaking of the “apparent association between non-literacy and illiteracy” and asserting “one apparent consequence of nonliteracy: lack of literature” ( 1973 , 113).

Among her major targets are Goody, Ong, Havelock, and McLuhan.

Yugoslavia was the name of the country when Lord published The Singer of Tales in 1960.

See for example, Lord’s chapters on “Writing and Oral Tradition” and “Homer” in Singers of Tales (1960). Compare on one hand with Havelock’s work and on the other hand with Finnegan, Literacy and Orality (1988). See also Lord, Singer of Tales , 2000 ; Parry, Making of Homeric Verse ( 1971 ).

Havelock and Marshall McLuhan were colleagues at the University of Toronto. Among the many influential works on the alphabetization of the brain that acknowledge a debt to Havelock is Maryanne Wolf’s Proust and the Squid ( 2007 ). Havelock’s work, which is pervaded by such slippages, is often cited on the “great transmission” or the revolutionary remaking of the human brain.

Compare with Lord, Singers of Tales (2000, 130) and the extended example of Yugoslav oral poets. Havelock, Literate revolution in Greece ( 1986 , 167), refers to “erosion of orality.”

Finnegan writes: “When we speak of both ‘orality’ and ‘literacy’ one or more of three main aspects may be involved: composition, performance, and transmission over time. These three do not always coincide. Thus it is possible for a work to be oral in performance but not in composition or transmission, or to have a written origin but non-written performance or transmission. These various combinations constitute a background to considering different patterns of transmissions…. The differing patterns do not coincide neatly with the distinction between oral and written traditions” (1988, 171–172). See Heath, Ways with words (1983); Schieffelin and Gilmore, Acquisition of literacy ( 1986 ); Tannen, Spoken and written language ( 1982 ). For examples of inattention to context and oral-literate relationships, see Canagarajah, Translingual practice (2013); Blommaert, Grassroots literacy ( 2008 ).

On letter writing, see popular South American films; Besnier, Literacy, emotion and authority , 1995 ; Cancian, Families, lovers, and their letters ( 2010 ); Henkin, Postal age, 2006 ; Kalman, Writing on the plaza ( 1990 ); Lyons, Readers and society , 2001 ; Lyons, Reading culture and writing practices ( 2008 ); Lyons, Writing culture of ordinary people ( 2013 ); Romani, Postal culture ( 2013 ); Scribner and Cole, Psychology of literacy ( 1981 ); Vincent, Literacy and popular culture ( 1989 ); Vincent, Rise of mass literacy ( 2000 ).

Contrast the Maori’s experience with that in Fiji described by Clammer, Literacy and social change ( 1976 ). According to Tagupa, “Education, change, and assimilation” ( 1981 ), missionaries and officials in Hawai‘i presumed that an alphabetic translation and print led directly to mass literacy and expected that cultural and social changes would necessarily follow.

For Central and South America, Salomon, “How an Andean ‘writing without words’ works” ( 2001 ), Hanks, Converting words ( 2010 ), and Rappaport, Politics of memory ( 1990 ) form excellent case study material. See also Seed, “‘Failing to marvel’” ( 1991 ). For great divide views, see Mignolo, Darker side of the Renaissance ( 1995 ); Boone and Mignolo, Writing without words ( 1994 ). For North America, recent scholarship on native peoples and their encounters with colonists informs the same fundamental questions and follows the same trajectory. Less sophisticated and less influenced by both linguistics and anthropology but now developing rapidly, Native American literacy studies has also been less influenced by scholarship in literacy studies. Regardless, it is ripe for revision with more sustained attention to the interaction between forms of orality and forms of literacy. It also speaks to the importance of non-alphabetic literacies, as Iroquois rituals, Dakota winter counts, and Pacific Northwest coast “totem poles” attest to other forms of record-keeping and a myriad of interactions that demonstrate cross-fertilization between oral and written forms. The colonizers also made deliberate use of cultural misrepresentation as a technique of coercion. Cessions of land, which the indigenous signatories thought of as temporary grants of use rights but which the English enforced as the entire alienation of all property rights, are well-known examples; for a survey, see Calloway, Pen and ink witchcraft ( 2013 ). For case studies, see Bross and Wyss, Early Native literacies ( 2008 ); Cohen, Networked wilderness ( 2010 ); Cushman, Cherokee syllabary ( 2011 ); S. Lyons, X-marks ( 2010 ); Morgan, Bearer of this letter ( 2009 ); Wyss, Writing Indians ( 2000 ).

For example, Canagarajah, Translingual practice ( 2013 ), repeats such catchwords and phrases as translingual, translocal, global, and cosmopolitan. Jan Blommaert’s 2008 pseudo-ethnography, Grassroots literacy , also slights these fundamental linguistic dimensions.

See also Cook-Gumperz and Gumperz, “From oral to written culture” ( 1981 ).

Among the large literature, see Schieffelin and Gilmore, Acquisition of literacy ( 1986 ); Tannen, Spoken and written language ( 1982 ); Heath, Ways with words ( 1983 ); Dyson, Multiple worlds of child writers ( 1989 ); Dyson, “‘Welcome to the jam’” ( 2003 ); Olson and Torrance, Cambridge handbook of literacy ( 2009 ).

For both examples of oppositions and differences, see Tannen, Spoken and written language ( 1982 ). The seminal work of Dell Hymes, Richard Bauman, and especially William Labov merits reopening by students of literacy.

See Street, Literacy in theory and practice ( 1984 ). For more on the debate over the New Literacy Studies, see Chap. 3 .

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Graff, H.J. (2022). Linguistics: Between Orality and Writing. In: Searching for Literacy. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-96981-3_2

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