Meaning & use
talked
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“talked” is a form of “talk”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
verbintransitive
Spoke aloud to someone, sharing words, ideas or news.
Grammar: No direct object; the listener comes after to or with: she talked to him.
Patterns
- talked to someone
- talked with someone
- talked about something
We talked for hours after dinner and lost track of time.
She talked to her manager about moving to a new team.
The children talked quietly so they would not wake the baby.
verbtransitive or intransitive
Discussed a subject or a plan, often to reach a decision.
Grammar: Takes an object with certain nouns (talked business) or is followed by about, over or through.
Patterns
- talked something over
- talked about something
- talked business
They talked over the offer before they accepted it.
The two leaders talked trade at the summit.
We talked through every option, one by one.
verbintransitiveinformal
Gave away secret information, especially when pressed.
Grammar: No object; often used in crime stories: the witness talked.
Patterns
- talked to the police
Under pressure, the suspect finally talked.
He talked to the police and named the others.
Nobody talked, even after weeks of questioning.
Word forms
| base form | talk |
|---|---|
| third person singular | talks |
| past tense | talked |
| -ing form | talking |
Common combinations
- talked to
- She talked to her neighbor over the fence.
- talked about
- We talked about our holiday plans.
- talked over
- They talked over the problem before deciding.
- talked into
- He talked me into joining the choir.
- talked out of
- I talked her out of quitting.
- talked non-stop
- He talked non-stop on the whole drive.
Synonyms and how they differ
- spoke
- Spoke is slightly more formal and often suits one person addressing others, while talked suggests a two-way conversation.
- chatted
- Chatted means talked in a light, friendly way, whereas talked can be serious.
- conversed
- Conversed is formal and rare in speech, while talked is the everyday choice.
- discussed
- Discussed takes a direct object and implies exchanging views on a topic, while talked is looser.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: talked or told?
talked vs told
Told needs a person as its object: told me the news. Talked needs to or with before the person: talked to me.
Practice
Yesterday we ______ to the landlord about the broken heater.
Choose one answer.
Yesterday points to the past tense, so talked is needed. Talk and talks are present forms and talking would need an auxiliary verb.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “talked”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.