Speche

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. An archaic spelling of speech, meaning the expression of thoughts in spoken words or the act of talking
2. An old form of the word for spoken language, referring to the act of uttering words aloud to others
3. A Middle English variant of speech, describing the vocal expression of ideas through talking

Etymology: "Speche" is a Middle English spelling of the word now written "speech," and the change in spelling is smaller than it looks. In Old English the noun was "sprǣc," which came from the verb "sprecan," meaning "to speak," so the noun and verb were once close relatives in form as well as sense. The final "c" of "sprǣc" was pronounced with a "ch" sound, which is why medieval scribes wrote "-che," and the spelling "speche" was simply a faithful record of that sound. Later English shifted the spelling toward "speech" while keeping the same "ch" sound.