I. ˈōrəl, ˈȯr-, ˈär- adjective
Etymology: Latin or-, os mouth + English -al; akin to Old English ōr beginning, origin, ōra border, bank, shore, Old Norse ōss mouth of a river, Latin ora edge, border, Middle Irish ā (gen. singular) mouth, Sanskrit ās
1.
a. : uttered by the mouth or in words : not written : spoken
oral traditions
oral delivery
oral testimony
b. : using lip movement and voice articulation : conducted or delivered by the spoken word
oral reading
specifically : emphasizing lip reading and the development of vocal expression rather than the use of manual signs in teaching the deaf
oral teacher
oral method
oral system
2.
a.
(1) : of, relating to, or belonging to the mouth : buccal
the oral mucous membrane
(2) : given or taken through or by way of the mouth
doses for oral administration
(3) : acting on the mouth
oral diseases
a skillful oral surgeon
b. : articulated between lips and uvula and with the velum raised so that there is no nasal resonance
oral speech sounds
an oral consonant
c.
(1) : being the surface on which the mouth is situated
the oral surface of a starfish
(2) : relating to or located on an oral surface
the water-vascular system is chiefly oral
— opposed to aboral
3.
a. : of, relating to, or characterized by the first stage of psychosexual development in which libidinal gratification is derived from intake (as of food), by sucking, and later by biting
b. : of, relating to, or characterized by personality traits of passive dependency and aggressiveness — compare anal , genital
• oral·ly -rəlē, -li adverb
II. noun
( -s )
1. : an oral part (as a plate or valve)
2. : an oral examination — usually used in plural
had to clear this hurdle before reaching your orals — Francis Biddle