Gesture and Speech

Opposite meaning words

Gesture noun - A movement of the body or limbs that expresses or emphasizes an idea or feeling.

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Speech is an antonym for gesture in motion as communication topic.

Nearby Words: gestured, gesturing, gestural

Speech noun - A usually formal discourse delivered to an audience.

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Gesture is an antonym for speech.

Nearby Word: speechless

good	good gesture	good speech
nice	nice gesture	nice speech
exact	exact gesture	exact speech
similar	similar gesture	similar speech
Other adjectives: common, standard, polite, single, small, big, little, heartfelt, grand, dramatic, final, last, different, said.

At one point he starts a defiant speech to a private enemy, only to realize that the gesture of raising a clenched fist accidentally activated the public channel...

Source: Hot Blooded / Literature
While he only appears briefly as a crowd extra during Rossiu's speech about executing Simon, he instantly was raised to this status among Westerners due to the fact that he's seen making a gesture that indicates approval in Japan, but just the opposite in the West.

Source: Memetic Badass / Anime and Manga

Cite this Source

Speech and Gesture. (2016). Retrieved 2026, July 21, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/gesture/speech

Gesture & Speech. N.p., 2016. Web. 21 Jul. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/gesture/speech>.

Speech or Gesture. 2016. Accessed July 21, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/gesture/speech.

Google Ngram Viewer shows how "gesture" and "speech" have occurred on timeline