oral

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Related to oral: cosmopolitan

oral

spoken: an oral history; an oral exam; pertaining to the mouth: the oral cavity

Not to be confused with:

aural – pertaining to an aura; pertaining to the ear or the sense of hearing

oral

spoken rather than written: oral exam; relating to the mouth: oral cavity

Not to be confused with:

verbal – relating to words: verbal ability; using words alone without action: verbal imagery; literal: a verbal translation

O·ral

(ôr′əl) or U·ralsk (yo͝o-rălsk′, o͞o-rälsk′)

A city of northwest Kazakhstan on the Ural River south-southeast of Samara, Russia. Founded by Cossacks c. 1622, it is a processing and manufacturing center.

o·ral

(ôr′əl)

adj.

1. Spoken rather than written.

2. Of or relating to the mouth: oral surgery.

3. Used in or taken through the mouth: an oral thermometer; an oral vaccine.

4. Consisting of or using speech: oral instruction.

5. Linguistics Articulated through the mouth only, with the nasal passages closed.

6. Psychology Of or relating to the first stage of psychosexual development in psychoanalytic theory, from birth to about 18 months, during which the mouth is the chief focus of exploration and pleasure. The oral stage is followed by the anal stage.

n. often orals

An academic examination in which questions and answers are spoken rather than written.

[Late Latin ōrālis, from Latin ōs, ōr-, mouth; see ōs- in Indo-European roots.]

o′ral·ly adv.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

oral

(ˈɔːrəl; ˈɒrəl)

adj

1. spoken or verbal: an oral agreement.

2. (Medicine) relating to, affecting, or for use in the mouth: an oral thermometer.

3. (Zoology) of or relating to the surface of an animal, such as a jellyfish, on which the mouth is situated

4. (Medicine) denoting a drug to be taken by mouth: an oral contraceptive. Compare parenteral

5. of, relating to, or using spoken words

6. (Phonetics & Phonology) 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

7. (Psychoanalysis) psychoanal

a. relating to a stage of psychosexual development during which the child's interest is concentrated on the mouth

b. denoting personality traits, such as dependence, selfishness, and aggression, resulting from fixation at the oral stage. Compare anal², genital², phallic²

(Education) an examination in which the questions and answers are spoken rather than written

[C17: from Late Latin orālis, from Latin ōs face]

ˈorally adv

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

o•ral

(ˈɔr əl, ˈoʊr-)

adj.

1. uttered by the mouth; spoken: oral testimony.

2. of, using, or transmitted by speech: oral teaching methods; oral traditions.

3. of or involving the mouth: oral hygiene.

4. done or administered through the mouth.

5. (of a speech sound) pronounced with all the air issuing through the mouth and none through the nose, as the normal English vowels or the consonants (b) and (v).

a. of, pertaining to, or characteristic of the earliest phase of psychosexual development, during which pleasure is derived from activities involving the mouth, as sucking, eating, and babbling.

b. of or pertaining to a group of adult behaviors and personality traits including eating, talking, feeding, and being friendly and generous.

7. lingual (def. 4).

8. an oral examination in a school, college, or university, given esp. to a candidate for an advanced degree.

[1615–25; < Latin ōr- (s. of ōs) mouth + -al¹]

o•ral′i•ty, n.

o′ral•ly, adv.

usage: See verbal.

o·ral

(ôr′əl)

Relating to the mouth.

The American Heritage® Student Science Dictionary, Second Edition. Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

aural

– oral

1. 'aural'

Aural means 'relating to your ears and your sense of hearing'. Aural is pronounced /'ɔːrəl/ or /'aʊrəl/.

I have used written and aural material.

2. 'oral'

Oral means 'relating to your mouth'. It also describes things that involve speaking rather than writing. Oral is pronounced /'ɔːrəl/.

...an oral test in German.

Both aural and oral are fairly formal words. They are used mainly to talk about teaching methods and examinations.

Collins COBUILD English Usage © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 2004, 2011, 2012

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

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Noun	1.	oral - an examination conducted by spoken communication oral exam, oral examination, viva, viva voce exam, examination, test - a set of questions or exercises evaluating skill or knowledge; "when the test was stolen the professor had to make a new set of questions"
Adj.	1.	oral - using speech rather than writing; "an oral tradition"; "an oral agreement" unwritten spoken - uttered through the medium of speech or characterized by speech; sometimes used in combination; "a spoken message"; "the spoken language"; "a soft-spoken person"; "sharp-spoken"
	2.	oral - of or relating to or affecting or for use in the mouth; "oral hygiene"; "an oral thermometer"; "an oral vaccine"
	3.	oral - of or involving the mouth or mouth region or the surface on which the mouth is located; "the oral cavity"; "the oral mucous membrane"; "the oral surface of a starfish" anatomy, general anatomy - the branch of morphology that deals with the structure of animals aboral - opposite to or away from the mouth; "the aboral surface of a starfish"
	4.	oral - a stage in psychosexual development when the child's interest is concentrated in the mouth; fixation at this stage is said to result in dependence, selfishness, and aggression depth psychology, psychoanalysis, analysis - a set of techniques for exploring underlying motives and a method of treating various mental disorders; based on the theories of Sigmund Freud; "his physician recommended psychoanalysis" anal retentive, anal - a stage in psychosexual development when the child's interest is concentrated on the anal region; fixation at this stage is said to result in orderliness, meanness, stubbornness, compulsiveness, etc.

oral

adjective spoken, vocal, verbal, unwritten, viva voce All students have to take a written and oral examination.

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

oral

adjective

1. Produced by the voice:

articulate, sonant, spoken, uttered, vocal, voiced.

2. Expressed or transmitted in speech:

spoken, unwritten, verbal, word-of-mouth.

Translations

Spanish / Español

Select a language:

oral examen oral

oral

[ˈɔːrəl]

A. ADJ

1. (= spoken) [history, tradition, exam] → oral (Jur) [agreement, evidence] → verbal

2. (Med, Anat) [contraceptive, vaccine, sex] → oral; [hygiene] → bucal

B. N → examen m oral

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

oral

(ˈoːrəl) adjective

1. spoken, not written. an oral examination.oral

2. of or by the mouth. oral hygiene; an oral contraceptive.oral

noun

a spoken examination. He passed the written exam, but failed his oral.examen oral

ˈorally adverb

medicine to be taken orally.oralmente, por vía oral

oral

→ oral

or·al

a. oral, bucal, rel. a la boca; verbal, hablado;

___ contraceptive → píldora contraceptiva;

___ diagnosis → diagnóstico bucal;

___ hygiene → higiene bucal;

___surgery → cirugía ___.

oral

adj oral, bucal

References in classic literature ?

He was to do this without the help of any written or printed specimens, with nothing in the shape of a grammar or analysis, but merely by oral communication with his Indian instructor, or with other natives, who, however comparatively intelligent, must from the nature of the case have been very imperfect teachers.

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A right good trooper he was, too, although in his oral narrative from which this tale is made there was no mention of that; the fact was learned from his surviving comrades.

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A skillful individual in his closet with all the local codes before him, might compile a law on some subjects of taxation for the whole union, without any aid from oral information, and it may be expected that whenever internal taxes may be necessary, and particularly in cases requiring uniformity throughout the States, the more simple objects will be preferred.

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"I heard ye," came the oral substitutes for kitchenware.

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"M-m," was the stranger's only oral comment upon this startling announcement; but what he thought might have been partially interpreted through the pitying light that entered his eyes.

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There he saw the grand-marshal, who charged him with an oral message to a Bonapartist in Paris, whose name I could not extract from him; but this mission was to prepare men's minds for a return (it is the man who says this, sire) -- a return which will soon occur."

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In utter silence they conversed, for they have no oral speech since they are without auditory nerves.

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But it is evident that the existing versions of the ballads are generally more imperfect than the original forms; they have suffered from the corruptions of generations of oral repetition, which the scholars who have recovered them have preserved with necessary accuracy, but which for appreciative reading editors should so far as possible revise away.

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The fables were in the first instance only narrated by Aesop, and for a long time were handed down by the uncertain channel of oral tradition.

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Her appearance always acted as a damper to the curiosity raised by her oral oddities: hard-featured and staid, she had no point to which interest could attach.

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Higginbotham's own oral testimony, in the negative.

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The lively countenances of these people are wonderfully indicative of the emotions of the soul, and the imperfections of their oral language are more than compensated for by the nervous eloquence of their looks and gestures.

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