Clear organization is usually less important in speaking than in writing.

Audiences find well-organized speakers to be more credible than poorly organized speakers.

How well a speech is organized affects how listeners view the speaker's competence and trustworthiness.

Research suggests that using a clear, specific method of speech organization can enhance your ability to deliver a speech fluently.

The introduction of a speech usually should be prepared before the body.

According to your textbook, it is usually best to prepare the body of the speech before the introduction.

Once you know the main points of your speech, you should then formulate your specific purpose.

Most speeches should contain from two to five main points.

According to your textbook, most speeches should contain from five to eight main points.

If a speech is 45 minutes long, an audience can be expected to keep track of as many as a dozen main points.

The time given to each main point in the body of a speech should be exactly the same.

When developing a speech, you should try to roughly balance the amount of time devoted to each main point.

The most effective order for the main points of a speech depends upon the topic, the specific purpose, and the audience.

Chronological organization is used primarily for informative speeches.

Speeches arranged in causal order usually have three main points.

When arranging a speech in causal order, you must deal first with the causes of an event and then explain its effects.

Problem-solution order is used most often in persuasive speeches.

Speeches arranged in problem-solution order are divided into four main parts.

In topical order the main points proceed from top to bottom, left to right, front to back, east to west, or some similar route.

When arranged in topical order, the main points of a speech usually follow a time sequence.

Regardless of what other methods you use to gain attention, you should almost always relate the topic to your audience in the introduction of a speech.

It is seldom a good idea to discuss the importance of your topic in the introduction of a speech.

If your topic is clear in the body of the speech, there is no need to state it in the introduction.

A startling introduction is effective only if it is firmly related to the speech topic.

Opening your speech with a lengthy quotation is an excellent way to gain the attention of your audience.

Using visual aids is an acceptable method of gaining attention in the introduction of a speech.

It is usually a good idea to restate your topic at some point in the introduction, even if the listeners already know it.

Goodwill is the audience's perception of whether a speaker is qualified to speak on a given topic.

Credibility is the audience's perception of whether a speaker is qualified to speak on a given topic.

Establishing goodwill is more likely to be necessary in the introduction of a persuasive speech than in the introduction of an informative speech.

Establishing goodwill is more likely to be necessary in the introduction of an informative speech than in the introduction of a persuasive speech.

Establishing goodwill is especially necessary in the introduction of a speech presented to a hostile audience.

One function of a preview statement is to signal that the body of the speech is about to begin.

The preview statement is usually the last component of an introduction and serves as a bridge to the body of the speech.

A preview statement is usually necessary in the introduction even when a speaker is addressing an audience that is well-informed about the topic.

A preview statement is especially important in a speech introduction when a speaker is addressing a hostile audience.

Under normal circumstances the introduction should constitute about 10 to 20 percent of a speech.

Under normal circumstances, you should work out the exact wording of your introduction after you have finished preparing the body of your speech.

As your textbook explains, working out a speech introduction in detail can help reduce a speaker's sense of stage fright.

A “rhetorical question” is a question that the audience answers mentally rather than out loud.

The preparation outline should be drawn up before a speaker begins research for a speech.

When making a preparation outline, you should state your main points and subpoints in full sentences to ensure that you develop your ideas fully.

When making an outline, you should place the main points farthest to the left and less important ideas progressively farther to the right.

You should include your specific purpose statement with your preparation outline.

Including the specific purpose with your preparation outline makes it easier to assess how well you have constructed the speech to accomplish your purpose.

The visual framework of a preparation outline shows the relationships among the speaker's ideas.

According to your textbook, the introduction, body, and conclusion should all be labeled in a speech preparation outline.

In a preparation outline, the specific purpose is usually stated before the introduction.

In a preparation outline, the specific purpose is usually stated after the introduction.

In a preparation outline, the specific purpose and central idea are identified by Roman numerals.

In the most common system of outlining, main points are identified by Roman numerals and subpoints by capital letters.

In the most common system of outlining, main points are identified by capital letters.

Stating main points in a word or two is usually sufficient for a preparation outline.

A preparation outline should include transitions and internal summaries.

According to your textbook, transitions and other connectives should be identified with Roman numerals on a speech preparation outline.

A preparation outline should include your preliminary bibliography.

A preparation outline should include your final bibliography.

“Dogs” would be an appropriate title for a speech to inform an audience about the major breeds of show dogs.

It is seldom necessary to include a formal bibliography in the preparation outline for a classroom speech.

A speaking outline is usually longer and more detailed than a preparation outline.

As your textbook explains, language and thought are closely linked.

The words we use to label an event determine to a great extent how we respond to that event.

If the meaning of a word is clear to you, you can assume that it is also clear to your audience.

The denotative meaning of a word includes all the feelings, associations, and emotions that the word touches off in different people.

The connotative meaning of a word is more variable, figurative, and subjective than its denotative meaning.

The connotative meaning of a word includes all the feelings, associations, and emotions that the word touches off in different people.

Connotative meaning is precise, literal, and objective.

One way to think of a word's denotative meaning is as its dictionary definition.

Denotative meaning gives words their emotional power.

A speech dominated by abstract words will almost always be clearer than one dominated by concrete words.

The more abstract a word, the more ambiguous it will be.

A public speaker needs to use big words to impress the audience.

It is often possible to use words accurately without using them clearly.

A speaker should avoid using familiar words because they make a speech sound trite.

As your textbook explains, if you want to sound eloquent, you should use words that are unfamiliar to the audience.

In dealing with technical topics, a speaker has little choice but to use technical language.

Abstract words are usually clearer to listeners than are concrete words.

Concrete words add to the imagery of language use by creating sensory impressions.

“She darted around the bookstore like a hummingbird in a flower garden” is an example of metaphor.

“She darted around the bookstore like a hummingbird in a flower garden” is an example of simile.

Good speech delivery should call attention to itself.

Good speech delivery conveys a speaker's ideas without calling attention to itself.

Nonverbal communication is based on a person's use of voice and body, rather than on the use of words.

One of the advantages of speaking from a manuscript is that it frees a speaker from the need to establish eye contact with the audience.

Speaking from a manuscript allows for greater spontaneity and directness than does speaking extemporaneously.

Speaking from memory is most effective when a speaker wants to be very responsive to feedback from the audience.

When speaking impromptu, you should do your best to look calm and confident no matter how nervous you may be feeling.

Impromptu speaking gives more precise control over thought and language than does extemporaneous speaking.

Speaking impromptu and speaking extemporaneously are essentially alike.

An extemporaneous speech is carefully prepared and practiced in advance.

“Conversational quality” in a speech means that the speaker talks the same as she or he would in ordinary conversation.

The “conversational quality” of extemporaneous speaking means that a speech has been well rehearsed yet sounds spontaneous to the audience.

No two people have exactly the same vocal characteristics.

A speaker always sounds louder to a listener than to the speaker.

Pitch is the relative highness or lowness of the speaker's voice.

People in the U.S. usually talk at a rate between 120 and 150 words per minute.

A faster rate of speech is usually called for when a speaker is explaining complex information.

Vocalized pauses are an effective way to increase a speaker's credibility.

Pauses usually work best in a speech when they are planned in advance.

Most people recognize and understand about the same number of words in reading as occur in spontaneous speech.