talk down

Hello, you have come here looking for the meaning of the word talk down. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word talk down, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say talk down in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word talk down you have here. The definition of the word talk down will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition oftalk down, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.
See also: talkdown

English

Pronunciation

  • (file)

Verb

talk down (third-person singular simple present talks down, present participle talking down, simple past and past participle talked down)

  1. (transitive, idiomatic) To negotiate a lower price.
    If he offers a very high price, see if you can talk him down before you agree to anything.
  2. (transitive, aviation, of ground control) To verbally assist someone to land an aircraft.
    • 1960 Feb, “Business with FAA”, in Flying Magazine, page 109:
      GET TALKED DOWN: When a pilot gets caught in weather, he may call the nearest tower for Ground Controlled Approach landing assistance, wherever the airport has GCA radar.
    • 2000, Larry King, Anything Goes!: What I've Learned from Pundits, Politicians, and Presidents, →ISBN, page 139:
      He got out, looked at me, and said, “I feel like Doris Day in Julie when she was talked down by air traffic control and landed the airplane.”[.]
    • 2008, Winston Fletcher, Powers of Persuasion: The Inside Story of British Advertising 1951-2000, →ISBN:
      Its Spielberg-inspired first commercial, in which Manhattan Island floated loftily through the sky and was talked down by air traffic control at Heathrow[.]
    • 2008, Nelson DeMille, Thomas Block, Mayday, →ISBN:
      In other words, if you talk him down and he crashes, you're worse off than if you hadn't tried.
  3. (transitive) To convince a person to cease a drastic action or response, such as a suicide attempt or act of rage.
    • 2007, Lincoln Child, Deep Storm:
      Talk him down, the rule book went. Calm him, get him secured. Easier said than done. Crane had talked down a would-be jumper standing on a support cable of the George Washington Bridge.
    • (Can we date this quote?), CJ Raines, Shelby: A Great Love:
      And that guy that talked him down told us what happen. It's kidnapping, attempted assault.
  4. (transitive) To overcome by spoken argument.
  5. (transitive, slang) To comfort someone experiencing a bad trip, to help them come down.
    • 1969, American Journal of Psychiatry, volume 125, number 4, page 154:
      They may then go to a hippie clinic crash pad to be "talked down."

Translations

See also

Further reading