11 Ways to Describe People Who Talk Too Much
Maximizing the amount of English you speak is the best way to start feeling more confident and will definitely accelerate the process of achieving English fluency.
With that said, what about those people who don’t know how to shut up?
We have all experienced it, we have all gotten ourselves stuck in a situation with someone who loves to have total control of the conversation, and doesn’t know when to be quiet and listen.
Most of these people aren’t very good conversationalists because they tend to cut you off (interrupt what you are saying) or talk over you (talk at the same time as you but louder).
But what are some common names and expressions we can use for these people in English?
Well, English is a very fun and colorful language and we actually have a lot of common colloquial sayings for people who tend to talk a lot more than they listen.
Take a look the list below of these 10 common names and expressions used to describe our talkative friends.
11 Ways to Describe People Who Talk Too Much
Chatty – Chatterbox: These expressions are derived from the verb to chat, which means to converse. If someone is very chatty it means they enjoy having conversations a lot and they tend to drag on (unnecessarily extend) the conversation. To be a chatterbox means you are a person who talks a lot and never shuts up.
- Taxi drivers are generally very chatty people.
- The receptionist is a bit of a chatterbox, she’s always on the phone talking.
Loud Mouth/ Big Mouth: This expression has a negative connotation. A loud mouth or a big mouth is someone who says the wrong thing at the wrong time. I would call someone either of these expressions if they were to spread rumors or tell other people’s secrets to everyone.
- Be careful what you say to Bob, he’s a bit of a loud mouth.
- Hey big mouth, why did you tell him about the party? It was supposed to be a surprise.
Windbag: A windbag is used to describe someone who talks a lot (usually about themselves) but what they are saying isn’t interesting or relevant to the person listening. Unless used jokingly, this expression could be seen as offensive as it suggests the person is nothing but a bag of wind.
- My science teacher is such a windbag, she spends the whole class talking about subjects that aren’t even relevant to the course.
Blabbermouth: Similar to loud mouth, a blabber mouth can be used express that the person says the wrong things at the wrong time. The verb to blabber is another way to say that the person speaks too much and generally about irrelevant or uninteresting things.
- He is such a blabbermouth, he told the boss that I was leaving before I had even made up my mind.
Yapper: A person who yaps and yaps and yaps all day. Yap is a verb used to say that the person talks a lot and typically at a very fast pace. Your yapper can also be another way to say your mouth. Alternatives to yapper can be pie hole, trap.
- Susan in such a yapper, I asked how she was and it took her 10 minutes to explain.
- That guy never shuts his yapper/pie hole/trap.
Gossip: To gossip is to talk about other people’s private affairs and their personal life behind their back. Gossiping is usually how rumors get
started and in most cases the information that gets passed on has been exaggerated or is a straight up lie
- She loves to gossip about all of her friends when they are not around
Talk someone’s ear off: This commonly used idiom is a fun and joking way to say that someone talks way too much and what they talk about is generally dull and boring. The expressions suggests that the person talks so much that your ear gets tired and falls from your head, bored to death!
- I wouldn’t bring up the topic of politics with that guy, he’ll talk your ear off.
Ramble: When somebody talks about one subject then changes to another subject without any real purpose, you can say they are rambling. People often have a tendency to ramble when they are feeling nervous, or when they don’t really know what they are talking about.
- My boss tends to ramble when he doesn’t know what to say or feels uncomfortable.
To Have the Gift of the Gab: If a person is very articulate and can easily convince others with their points of view you can say that person has the gift of the gab. Gab is an informal way to say mouth.
These people are generally very convincing and often use their “gift” to trick and manipulate others.
- Be careful of that salesman, he has the gift of the gab and he’ll convince you to buy the most expensive car in the lot.
Do you know any others? Do you use similar expressions in your native language?
Help out the rest of the RealLife English Global Community and let us all know of any other common expressions you may have heard related to the way people speak. Also, if you have any interesting of funny expressions you say I your native language, we would love to hear about them too.
Leave a message in the comments below with all your responses.
Floyd the Barber.
We have two expressions in Irish; “chuirfeadh caint i mbuidéal” which means you could put speech in a bottle and “bhainfeadh caint as cloch” which means you could get a rock to talk to you
Thanks for sharing!
Long winder is one I have heard and not mentioned. After reading what these definitions mean to some people and the new age of social media I wounder if it has changed a bit. When someone has to post every idea that they want to share, what do you call that? Just posting this I feel like I will be “titled.”