Overlapping speech is best described as which phenomenon?

Overlapping speech is best described as which phenomenon?

• A. Simultaneous speech
• B. Interruptions
• C. Prolonged Silence
• D. Backchanneling

Answer: (A)

Overlapping speech is about two or more people talking at the same time. The key feature is that one speaker starts before the previous speaker has finished, so you hear multiple voices at once. This is different from interruptions, which are deliberate acts to seize the floor and often cut someone off. It’s also distinct from backchanneling, which are listening signals like “uh-huh” that don’t take the floor. Prolonged silence, on the other hand, is simply a lack of speech. So the phenomenon described by overlapping speech is simultaneous speech.

Overlapping speech is about two or more people talking at the same time. The key feature is that one speaker starts before the previous speaker has finished, so you hear multiple voices at once. This is different from interruptions, which are deliberate acts to seize the floor and often cut someone off. It’s also distinct from backchanneling, which are listening signals like “uh-huh” that don’t take the floor. Prolonged silence, on the other hand, is simply a lack of speech. So the phenomenon described by overlapping speech is simultaneous speech.