Meaning & use
talking at someone
Last updated
Meanings
phraseidiominformal
Speaking to someone without listening to them or caring about their response.
Grammar: Used after be or keep; the object goes after at: 'He was talking at her.'
Patterns
- be talking at someone
- keep talking at someone
- talk at someone about something
She was talking at me for ten minutes and never once asked what I thought.
Stop talking at your brother and give him a chance to answer.
The manager kept talking at the team instead of listening to their concerns.
phraseidiomdisapproving
Speaking to a person in a one-sided way, as if they were only an audience.
Grammar: Often used with a continuous tense to suggest a habit or an ongoing annoyance.
Patterns
- be talking at someone
- start talking at someone
Halfway through the meeting I realized he was talking at us, not with us.
It feels rude when a guest talks at you for an hour without a single question.
Common combinations
- be talking at someone
- He was talking at me while I tried to read my book.
- keep talking at someone
- She kept talking at him even after he stood up to leave.
- talk at someone for hours
- My uncle can talk at you for hours about his car.
- talk at someone instead of with someone
- Good teachers talk with students, not at them.
- feel talked at
- By the end of the lecture we all felt talked at rather than taught.
Synonyms and how they differ
- lecture
- Suggests speaking in a long, serious way to an audience; talking at someone is more about ignoring the other person's replies.
- monologue
- A noun for a long speech by one person; talking at someone describes the same behavior as an action toward a listener.
- talk down to
- Means speaking as if you are superior; talking at someone is about not listening, not about rank.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: talking at someone or talking to someone? talking at someone or talking about someone?
talking at someone vs talking to someone
Talking to someone can be neutral or a scolding; talking at someone always suggests the speaker is not listening.
talking at someone vs talking about someone
Talking about someone means discussing them when they are not there, not speaking toward them.
Practice
Which sentence best shows the meaning of "talking at someone"?
Choose one answer.
"Talking at someone" means speaking without listening or expecting an answer, so the sentence with no questions fits. "Talked to me about the schedule" is neutral two-way talk, "talked about me" means discussing someone absent, and "talked me into" means persuading.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “talking at someone”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.