Talk Down

B1 16+

Pronunciation: /tɔːk daʊn/

Definitions of talk down

verb to speak in a condescending or belittling manner towards someone

Example Sentences

A1 She talks down to her younger sister, always using simple words.

A2 The teacher talked down to the students, making sure they understood the lesson.

B1 He tends to talk down to his colleagues, assuming they know less than him.

B2 The manager talked down to the team during the meeting, belittling their ideas.

C1 The professor is known for talking down to anyone who questions his expertise.

C2 The politician's condescending attitude often leads him to talk down to his opponents.

adverb in a condescending or belittling manner

Example Sentences

A1 The teacher talked down to the students, using simple language.

A2 She talked down to her younger brother, explaining things in a patronizing way.

B1 The manager talked down to the new employee, making them feel inferior.

B2 He was criticized for talking down to his colleagues during the meeting.

C1 The expert talked down to the audience, assuming they had no prior knowledge on the subject.

C2 The professor was known for talking down to his students, belittling their intelligence.

Examples of talk down in a Sentence

formal The speaker tried to talk down the audience's concerns during the meeting.

informal He always tries to talk down anyone who disagrees with him.

slang Don't let him talk you down like that, stand up for yourself!

figurative She felt like the dark clouds were talking down to her, making her feel small and insignificant.

Grammatical Forms of talk down

past tense

talked down

plural

talks down

comparative

talked downer

superlative

talked downest

present tense

talk down

future tense

will talk down

perfect tense

have talked down

continuous tense

talking down

singular

talks down

positive degree

talk down

infinitive

to talk down

gerund

talking down

participle

talked down

Origin and Evolution of talk down

First Known Use: 1601 year
Language of Origin: English
Story behind the word: The origin of the phrase 'talk down' can be traced back to the English language.
Evolution of the word: The term 'talk down' originally meant to speak in a condescending or patronizing manner towards someone. Over time, it has evolved to also mean persuading or calming someone down through conversation.