Soliloquy

Pronunciation

• enPR: sÉ™lÄ­lʹəkwÄ“, IPA: /səˈlɪlÉ™kwi/

Origin

1595–1605; From Late Latin sōliloquium in the title of Augustine of Hippo Soliloquiorum libri duo, from sōlus ("only, sole") + loquor ("I speak").

Full definition of soliloquy

Noun

1. (drama) The act of a character speaking to themselves so as to reveal their thoughts to the audience.At the end of the second act the main villain gave a soliloquy detailing his plans to attack the protagonist.
2. A speech or written discourse in this form.
• 1835, s:Author:William Gilmore Simms, s:The Partisan, The feeling of Singleton's bosom grew heightened in its tone of melancholy, and a more passionate emphasis of thought broke forth in his half-muttered soliloquy:— ¶"How I remember as I look ...

Usage notes

Primarily used of theater, particularly the works of William Shakespeare, as a term of art, particularly for finely-crafted speeches. An archetype is the “To be or not to be” soliloquy in Hamlet. In informal speech or discussions of popular culture, the term monologue is used instead, generally in a pejorative sense, suggesting that the speaker is a self-centered boor who won’t shut up.

Synonyms

• (speech or written discourse) monologue

Antonyms

• (discourse of a single person) colloquy, dialogue, dialog

Hypernyms

• locution
• oration

Derived terms

• soliloquist
• soliloquize

Related terms

• solo, solitude
• locution – see other terms on same loquor root

Verb

1. (very rare) To issue a soliloquy.

Synonyms

• soliloquize much more common