Word.ws English Dictionary

speak for oneself

speak for oneself verb: expressing disagreement with an opinion expressed by another.

Verb

speak for oneself (third-person singular simple present speaks for oneself, present participle speaking for oneself, simple past spoke for oneself, past participle spoken for oneself)

  1. (idiomatic, imperative) Expressing disagreement with an opinion expressed by another.
    • That idea makes no sense at all. – Speak for yourself! I think it's a great idea.
    • “I’ll tell you what it is, gentlemen,” said he, “we’re all afraid.”¶ “Speak for yourself, sir,” said Mr. Giles, who was the palest of the party.1838, Boz [pseudonym; Charles Dickens], “Looks after Oliver, and Proceeds with His Adventures”, in Oliver Twist; […], volume II, London: Richard Bentley, […], →OCLC, page 138
  2. To have obvious implications; to require no explanation.
    • His fantastic record as a manager speaks for itself.
    • His actions speak for themselves.
  3. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see speak, for. To provide an opinion only on one's own behalf.
    • I'm here speaking for myself, not for my company.

Forms of speak for oneself

third-person singular presentspeaks for oneself
present participlespeaking for oneself
pastspoke for oneself
past participlespoken for oneself

Questions about speak for oneself

What does speak for oneself mean?
Speak for oneself means expressing disagreement with an opinion expressed by another.
What part of speech is speak for oneself?
Speak for oneself is a verb.
What is the past tense of speak for oneself?
The past tense of speak for oneself is spoke for oneself.

Words near speak for oneself in the dictionary

  1. speak
  2. speak as one finds
  3. speak by the card
  4. speak down to
  5. speak for
  6. speak for oneself
  7. speak highly
  8. speak ill of
  9. speak in circles
  10. speak in dollars
  11. speak in terms

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: speak for oneself (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: En-au-speak for oneself.ogg.

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