Outspoken

How to spell outspoken

9 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce outspoken

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does outspoken mean?

1. adjectiveStating opinions frankly and openly, even when they may cause disagreement or offence.

Outspoken in a sentence

• She was the most outspoken member of the committee, challenging every proposal.

• His outspoken comments about management cost him a promotion.

Where does outspoken come from?

Language of origin: Germanic

This word grew out of the verb 'outspeak', a combination of the prefix 'out-', meaning 'out loud' or 'openly', and 'speak', which descends from the Old English specan or sprecan, meaning 'to talk' or 'to make utterance'. In its earliest uses 'outspeak' could mean simply to speak out or to speak louder than others, and the participle 'outspoken' settled into describing a person who says what they think plainly and without holding back. The modern adjective, common from the early nineteenth century, carries a slight flavour of boldness or even bluntness, since to be outspoken is to risk causing offence. The spelling trap is gentle but real: it is a single solid word with no hyphen, and the ending is 'spoken', the irregular participle of speak, not 'spoke' or 'speaking'. The same 'out-' prefix that signals openness here also powers words like 'outburst' and 'outcry', all suggesting something pushed forcefully into the open.

How the word is built

• out- (out, openly)
• spoken (past participle of speak, from Old English specan)