Word family noun speaker speech adjective unspeakable speechless outspoken spoken ≠ unspoken verb speak adverb unspeakably
From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishspokenspok‧en1 /ˈspəʊkən $ ˈspoʊ-/ verb x-refthe past participle of speakspokenspoken2 ●●○ adjective 1 → spoken English/language etc2 → the spoken word3 → quietly/softly-spoken4 → be spoken for → well-spokenTHESAURUSspoken used about the language that people speak rather than writeSpoken English is often less formal than written English.I can understand classical Arabic but not spoken Arabic.oral an oral test is one in which you have to speak rather than write. Oral is also used about culture, traditions, and history that are based on spoken English rather than being written downWe had a 15-minute oral exam in German.Anglo-Saxon stories and poems were part of a largely oral culture.verbal a verbal agreement, warning, form of communication etc is spoken rather than written downWe had a verbal agreement but no written contract.The company have received verbal approval to begin the project.by/through word of mouth by someone telling you about something rather than by reading about it somewhere – used to say how you got some informationHe found out about the job by word of mouth.A lot of our customers hear about us through word of mouth.Examples from the Corpus
spoken• This book will help you with both spoken and written English.• One very important problem in early learning is caused by the difference between spoken and written language.• One item which is becoming more significant is powers of communication - both spoken and written word.• It would have been the easiest thing in the world for the softly spoken champ to have been intimidated by such surroundings.• In practice, spoken language interpreters are highly educated and highly trained.• The mental lexicon is also involved in the production of written or spoken language.• The human information processing system generally has few problems with spoken or written language, even when the stimulus is noisy or ambiguous.• Idiomatic and spoken phrases tend to differ widely throughout the country.• Even his softly spoken voice suggests a reticence toward off-stage communication.• By the time the talking was over, the hearings had generated over nine million spoken words. 