to speak; to talk
HSK level
说话 is written with 17 strokes (说: 9, 话: 8). The animation replays automatically.
说话 (shuōhuà) is a verb-object compound meaning 'to speak' or 'to talk' in the general sense — to produce speech, to be talking, or to have a conversation.
Literally 'speak words' (说 + 话), it's a separable verb: you can split it for grammatical purposes (说了一句话 'said one sentence,' 说什么话 'say what'). Important contrast: 说话 is intransitive — you cannot say 说话中文 for 'speak Chinese.' For 'speak a language,' use 说 alone (说中文, 说英语).
Use 说话 when the focus is the act of talking itself: 'don't talk in class' (上课不要说话), 'he's not talking to me' (他不跟我说话), 'the baby is starting to talk' (孩子开始说话了). It also covers 'keep one's word' in 说话算话 (shuōhuà suàn huà).
Character by character
Memory hook: Literally 'speak words' — the most basic possible verb for talking.
请不要在图书馆说话。
Qǐng bú yào zài túshūguǎn shuōhuà.
Please don't talk in the library.
neutral
他生气了，不跟我说话。
Tā shēngqì le, bù gēn wǒ shuōhuà.
He's angry and won't talk to me.
spoken
我儿子一岁就开始说话了。
Wǒ érzi yí suì jiù kāishǐ shuōhuà le.
My son started talking at one year old.
neutral
你说话太快了，我听不懂。
Nǐ shuōhuà tài kuài le, wǒ tīng bù dǒng.
You're talking too fast, I can't understand.
spoken
做人要说话算话。
Zuò rén yào shuōhuà suàn huà.
A person should keep their word.
written
说 is transitive — it takes an object: 说中文 (speak Chinese), 说一句话 (say a sentence). 说话 is intransitive — it just means 'to be talking.' If you need to say WHAT was said, use 说; if you just mean the act of talking, use 说话.
聊天 is 'to chat' — casual back-and-forth conversation for fun. 说话 is more general 'speaking,' which can be one-way or instructional. Friends 聊天; a baby learns to 说话.
讲话 is more formal — used for speeches, addresses, or public talks (领导讲话 'the leader gives an address'). 说话 is everyday talking. Use 讲话 for formal contexts, 说话 for daily life.
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