You have a way with words.What does it mean? is this a sarcastic word? or Can I use it for someone who speaks nicely? Is there another word for someone who speaks or text clearly and effectively

  • 4
    It means someone who has good command over the language. They can also be cogent, eloquent, verbose, laconic, dextrous, etc. – vickyace Mar 28 '17 at 17:16
  • To have a way with someone or something is an idiom. – choster Mar 29 '17 at 0:25

In general, it is a compliment:

Wow, that speech you gave was amazing! You have a real way with words!

As with many phrases in English, it can be used sarcastically to mean the exact opposite. For example, picture two guys in a bar trying to pick up on women:

Bob: Hey baby. You must be Jamaican, because Jamaican (you're making) me crazy!

(After she walks away from that terrible pick-up line)

Jim: Wow Bob, that was amazing. I never knew you had such a way with words.


To have a way with words means to have a talent for using language in a:

charming / eloquent / effective / persuasive manner.

It is also referred to as: the gift of the gab.

Although the expression recognises the talent of the speaker, it can equally be used of great orators or of demagogues/rabble-rousers.

That's to say, it acknowledges the ability of the speaker to use words effectively to achieve a goal, whether for good or evil.

One way of achieving such eloquence is said to be kissing Ireland's Blarney stone, part of a castle near the city of Cork. Eloquent people are sometimes said to have kissed the Blarney stone.

(http://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/have+a+way+with+words) (https://forum.wordreference.com/threads/to-have-a-way-with-words.1540004/) (http://www.blarneycastle.ie/pages/kiss-the-blarney-stone)

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