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oral
[ awr-uhl ]
adjective
- uttered by the mouth; spoken:
oral testimony.
- of, using, or transmitted by speech:
oral methods of language teaching; oral traditions.
- of, relating to, or involving the mouth:
the oral cavity.
- done, taken, or administered through the mouth:
an oral dose of medicine.
- Phonetics. articulated with none of the voice issuing through the nose, as the normal English vowels and the consonants b and v.
- Psychoanalysis.
- of or relating to the earliest phase of infantile psychosexual development, lasting from birth to one year of age or longer, during which pleasure is obtained from eating, sucking, and biting.
- of or relating to the sublimation of feelings experienced during the oral stage of childhood:
oral anxiety.
- of or relating to gratification by stimulation of the lips or membranes of the mouth, as in sucking, eating, or talking
- Zoology. pertaining to that surface of polyps and marine animals that contains the mouth and tentacles.
noun
- an oral examination in a school, college, or university, given especially to a candidate for an advanced degree.
oral
/ ˈɒrəl; ˈɔːrəl /
adjective
- spoken or verbal
an oral agreement
- relating to, affecting, or for use in the mouth
an oral thermometer
- of or relating to the surface of an animal, such as a jellyfish, on which the mouth is situated
- denoting a drug to be taken by mouth Compare parenteral
an oral contraceptive
- of, relating to, or using spoken words
- phonetics pronounced with the soft palate in a raised position completely closing the nasal cavity and allowing air to pass out only through the mouth
- psychoanal
- relating to a stage of psychosexual development during which the child's interest is concentrated on the mouth
noun
- an examination in which the questions and answers are spoken rather than written
oral
/ ôr′əl /
- Relating to or involving the mouth.
Usage Note
Derived Forms
- ˈorally, adverb
Other Words From
- o·ral·i·ty noun
- o·ral·ly adverb
- non·o·ral adjective
- post·o·ral adjective
- sub·o·ral adjective
- un·o·ral adjective
Word History and Origins
Word History and Origins
Origin of oral1
Example Sentences
As the global cultural body Unesco reports, oral historians teach young initiates about "history, laws, rituals, time reckoning, cosmology, myths, rules of conduct, and the function of the Gada system".
"The oral pill is still not available in prisons, online or in community pharmacy," he said.
The justices will hear oral argument later this month in Louisiana v.
The court will hear oral argument and decide the case in it's next term, which begins in October.
In upholding the sanctity of the spoken word, Fugard took his place in the oral tradition of Homer.
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