Verbal
/ˈvɜːr.bəl/noun
Relating to words, speech, or the use of language.
Did you know?Verbal descends from Latin verbum, and the same deep root behind it also gave English words like 'word' and 'verb'—showing how speech itself was treated as a force worth naming.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*wer-
“to speak, say”
Latin
Latin
verbum
“word; statement; expression”
Late Latin
Latin
verbālis
“of words, verbal”
Old French
Old French
verbal
“of words; spoken”
Middle English
English
verbal
“pertaining to words or speech”
Modern English
English
verbal
“relating to words or speech”