Meaning & use
speaking engagement
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Meanings
nouncountable
An arranged event where someone gives a talk to an audience, usually for work or a public occasion.
Grammar: Countable: one event is 'a speaking engagement', and several are 'speaking engagements'. It often follows 'have', 'accept', 'fulfill', or 'cancel'.
Patterns
- have a speaking engagement
- accept a speaking engagement
- a speaking engagement at a conference
- cancel a speaking engagement
The professor has a speaking engagement at the university next week.
She had to cancel a speaking engagement because of the storm.
His speaking engagements often take him to other countries.
nouncountable
A paid or professional booking to give a speech, especially for a well-known person.
Grammar: Countable and often used in the plural when talking about a person's regular schedule of talks: 'speaking engagements'.
Patterns
- a paid speaking engagement
- a series of speaking engagements
- book a speaking engagement
- a speaking engagement for a company
The author earns extra income from paid speaking engagements.
The agent handles all her speaking engagements and travel.
He turned down a speaking engagement in order to stay home.
Word forms
| plural | speaking engagements |
|---|
Common combinations
- have a speaking engagement
- I have a speaking engagement in Chicago on Friday.
- accept a speaking engagement
- She was happy to accept the speaking engagement.
- cancel a speaking engagement
- He canceled the speaking engagement after getting sick.
- a speaking engagement at a conference
- They met at a speaking engagement at a technology conference.
- paid speaking engagement
- The coach does several paid speaking engagements each year.
Synonyms and how they differ
- talk
- 'Talk' is more general and can be informal; 'speaking engagement' suggests a scheduled professional event.
- speech
- 'Speech' focuses on the words delivered; 'speaking engagement' focuses on the event or booking.
- lecture
- 'Lecture' is usually educational and often part of a course; a speaking engagement can be for any audience or purpose.
- presentation
- 'Presentation' is often shorter and may include slides or a product; a speaking engagement is usually a formal talk.
Commonly confused: speaking engagement or engagement? speaking engagement or speaking?
speaking engagement vs engagement
'Engagement' alone can mean an agreement to marry or a period of employment; 'speaking engagement' is specifically a booked talk.
speaking engagement vs speaking
'Speaking' is the activity of talking; it does not by itself mean an arranged event.
Practice
She has a speaking engagement ___ an education conference in Boston.
Choose one answer.
'At' is the natural preposition for the location or event where the talk happens: 'at a conference'. 'On' would introduce the topic, and 'for' would introduce the organization or audience, so they do not fit this blank.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “speaking engagement”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.