Types of Oral Communication
Chapter Sixty-Three
Syllabus topic 3.2.2, "Types of Oral Communication - Verbal Communication - Formal Speech (Oral & Written)"
Pages 309 to 312 of 406
In one line
Oral communication is classified by whether words are used, by how formal it is, by how many people are involved, and by which way it flows, and a formal speech may be delivered orally or written out first.
Verbal and non-verbal
Verbal communication is communication in words. It divides into oral, that is, spoken, and written.
Non-verbal communication is everything conveyed without words, and it accompanies almost all speech.
| Kind of non-verbal signal | What it covers | Why a lawyer should care |
|---|---|---|
| Kinesics | Gesture, posture, movement | A witness's manner is read by a court whether or not it should be |
| Facial expression | The face, especially the eyes | The first thing a client reads on an adviser's face is whether the case is hopeless |
| Eye contact | Looking and not looking | Its meaning varies sharply between cultures, so it proves less than people think |
| Proxemics | The distance kept between people | The layout of a courtroom is proxemics made permanent |
| Haptics | Touch, such as a handshake | Governed by strong professional conventions |
| Paralanguage | Tone, pitch, pace, volume, pauses | The same sentence is a question, a threat or an apology depending on it |
| Appearance | Dress and grooming | The reason courts have dress rules at all |
| Chronemics | The use of time | Being late is a message, and it is received |
The trap. Paralanguage is often called vocal but non-verbal, because it travels with speech without being words. If an examiner asks whether tone is verbal or non-verbal, the answer is that the words are verbal and the tone is not.
The proposition to be careful with. Textbooks often say that a fixed percentage of communication is non-verbal. Those figures come from experiments about feelings and attitudes and do not apply to ordinary informational speech. Say instead that non-verbal signals strongly affect how a message is received, especially where feelings are involved, and avoid quoting a percentage you cannot defend.
Classification by formality
Formal oral communication follows a recognised structure, occurs in an official setting and is usually planned. Examples: an address to a court, a lecture, a formal interview, a presentation, a speech at a college function, proceedings at a meeting conducted under rules.
Informal oral communication is unplanned and unstructured, and follows relationships rather than positions. Examples: conversation between colleagues, discussion over tea, a telephone call to a friend.
The grapevine. The informal network by which news travels through an organisation. It is fast, it is often right, and it cannot be abolished, so it is better used than fought.
Classification by number of participants
Intrapersonal. Communication within one person: thinking, rehearsing an argument, talking to yourself while drafting. It is included because preparation for speaking begins here.
Interpersonal or dyadic. Between two people. The client interview, the telephone call, the conference with a senior, the cross-examination of one witness.
Types of Oral Communication
Small group. Three to about twenty. A conference of counsel, a committee, a moot team, a group discussion at an interview.
Public. One speaker, many listeners. A lecture, an address at a function, an argument in open court.
Mass. Through a medium to an audience the speaker cannot see. Radio, television, a recorded lecture. Ambedkar's broadcast in Module 2 of this syllabus is an example, and it explains the speech's careful, anticipating structure.
Classification by direction
One-way. The speaker sends and no reply is expected: a broadcast, a formal announcement.
Two-way. Reply expected and used: a conversation, a negotiation, an examination of a witness.
Upward, downward and horizontal, in an organisation. Downward is instruction from senior to junior; upward is reporting and complaint from junior to senior; horizontal is between equals. Upward communication is the one that fails most often, because juniors do not deliver bad news.
Formal speech, oral and written
MU's label pairs the words "Formal Speech (Oral & Written)", and this is what the pairing means.
Formal speech delivered orally. Prepared but spoken, whether from notes, from memory or extempore. The speaker can respond to the room.
Formal speech written out. The same speech composed in full as a text: read from a script, circulated, published, or answered in an examination question. Ambedkar's broadcast survives as a written text; it was delivered as speech.
Why the distinction is examined. Because the paper asks candidates to write speeches. In February 2026 the question was to write a speech welcoming a chief guest for a Moot Court Committee event. That is formal speech in its written form, and the next two chapters of these notes deal with preparing and writing one.
The four modes of delivery, which belong here.
| Mode | What it is | Best for | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Manuscript | Read from a full text | Anything where exact words matter, such as a legal statement or a broadcast | Sounds read; loses the room |
| Memorised | Learnt by heart | Very short pieces, a vote of thanks | One lapse and it collapses |
| Extempore | Prepared thoroughly, delivered from notes | Almost all speeches and all advocacy | Needs real preparation |
| Impromptu | No preparation | The unavoidable, such as being asked to say a few words | Rambling, unless you have a structure ready |
The rule to remember. Extempore, meaning prepared but not written out word for word, is what a good speaker uses and what an examiner is describing when a question says "make a speech".
A worked answer
Question. "Explain the types of oral communication with examples." Six marks.
A model answer. Oral communication may be classified in four ways. By whether words carry the message, it is verbal, that is, in spoken words, and it is always accompanied by non-verbal signals such as gesture, facial expression, eye contact, the distance kept between speakers, and paralanguage, which is the tone, pitch, pace and volume of the voice; the words are verbal and the manner in which they are said is not. By formality it is formal, planned and structured and occurring in an official setting, such as an argument in court, a lecture or a presentation, or informal and unplanned, such as a conversation between colleagues, together with the grapevine along which news travels in any organisation. By the number of participants it is intrapersonal, that is, within one mind, as in rehearsing an argument; interpersonal, between two, as in a client interview or a telephone call; small group, as in a conference of counsel or a committee; public, as in a lecture or an address to a court; and mass, through a medium to an unseen audience, as in Ambedkar's broadcast on All India Radio. And by direction it is one-way, as in an announcement, or two-way, as in a negotiation, and within an organisation it is downward, upward or horizontal, of which upward communication fails most often because juniors are reluctant to carry bad news.
Types of Oral Communication
Why it scores. Four bases of classification, each named, each with examples, and at least one example drawn from the syllabus itself.
Quick revision
Verbal is in words, oral or written. Non-verbal is everything else: kinesics, facial expression, eye contact, proxemics, haptics, paralanguage, appearance, chronemics.
Do not quote a percentage for non-verbal communication.
By formality: formal, informal, and the grapevine.
By number: intrapersonal, interpersonal, small group, public, mass.
By direction: one-way and two-way; downward, upward and horizontal.
Formal speech may be delivered orally or written out, which is what MU's label means.
Four modes of delivery: manuscript, memorised, extempore, impromptu. Extempore is the working default.
Test yourself
1. Is tone of voice verbal or non-verbal? The words are verbal; the tone is not. Tone, pitch, pace, volume and pauses are called paralanguage, and they are vocal but non-verbal, because they travel with speech without being words.
2. Give the five classes by number of participants, with an example of each. Intrapersonal, such as rehearsing an argument in your head; interpersonal, such as a client interview; small group, such as a conference of counsel; public, such as an address to a court; and mass, such as a radio broadcast.
3. What is the grapevine, and what should be done about it? The informal network along which news travels in an organisation, following relationships rather than positions. It is fast and often accurate, cannot be abolished, and is better used than fought.
Types of Oral Communication
4. What does MU mean by "Formal Speech (Oral & Written)"? That a formal speech exists in two forms: as something delivered aloud, and as a text composed in full, whether read from a script, circulated, published or written out in an examination. The paper tests the second, as when it asked for a speech welcoming a chief guest.
5. Name the four modes of delivery and say which a good speaker uses. Manuscript, memorised, extempore and impromptu. A good speaker ordinarily uses the extempore mode, which means thorough preparation and delivery from notes rather than from a word-for-word text.
The rest of this subject
These notes are cut from the University's printed syllabus. Open the syllabus itself, or the past papers, for the same subject.