Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
talking-to

talking-to

7 5.8
A firm telling someone they did something wrong
  • noun
  • /ˈtɔːkɪŋ tuː/
  • Informal
: reprimenda
  • After his poor behavior at the party, his parents gave him a firm talking-to about respecting others.
  • a good talking-to
  • needs a talking-to

That was a period in my life where I got now I just had to sit and take my talking to.

Examples

  • (Don't worry, I gave her a good talking-to about it.)

    Blog text (1)

  • They also gave me a stern talking-to.

    Blog text (27)

  • Gave me a right talking to the other night.

    Let Him Have It (1991)

  • I'd like to talk to them.

    Sanitation Day (2021)

  • I gave him a talking-to.

    A Christmas Story (1983)

  • They'll give him a talking-to.

    Spy (2015)

  • I really should give that pup a talking-to.

    Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey (1993)

  • "Zev, you have to give him a talking-to," she said as they drove home.

    Fiction book (1993)

  • You know, the individuals that I interviewed after giving them a severe talking-to gave me a very nice description of somebody that looks exactly like you.

    Pistol Whipped (2008)

  • The next day, the teacher gave us a pretty stern talking-to about how she just answered a question about what an orgasm is, and the thing about devoting 15 minutes of class time to orgasms was a lie we shouldn't have told, because now all the parents were upset with her.

    Blog text (15)

Synonyms

scolding
vstalking-to
6 3.3

A strong angry talk that tells someone they did something wrong

involves firm speech but not necessarily anger
talking to
vstalking-to
  • Informal
3 4.2

A serious scolding from someone like a parent or boss

has identical meaning but is written as a hyphenated form
speaking to
vstalking-to
  • Informal
1 7.0

A short talk telling someone they did something wrong

focuses on the speaker using firm words about behavior

Antonyms

to encourage
877 2.3

Give someone support and confidence so they try or keep doing something

praise
220 1.0

Words or actions that show admiration for someone

How Severe

berating
1 6.3
reprimand
  • Formal
24 6.1
rebuke
22 6.8
talking-to
  • Informal
7 5.8
admonition
16 7.4
warning
138 1.0

Surface Forms

talking-to singular
talking-tos plural

Morphology

talking-to = talking (semi-transparent) = to + talk + ing

The compound is built from 'talking' + 'to' and clearly refers to speaking to someone, but the specialized meaning 'a reprimand' is idiomatic and not strictly predictable from the parts. [Postprocessing: moved 'to' from base_words to prefix]

Etymology

Talking-to comes from the simple idea of giving someone a talk to them — a firm 'talk' about their behavior. So a talking-to is a short, serious speech that scolds or warns someone.