monologue
/ˈmɒnəlɒɡ/·모놀로그·noun
a long speech by one person
GreekCEFR B2
Root
mono- (one, alone) + Greek 'logos' (word)
Greek monologos (speaking alone) → French monologue → English monologue
In a word
mono- (alone) + logos (word) = 'words spoken alone'. Like Hamlet on an empty stage — one mouth carrying the whole logos. Swap mono for dia and the speech turns into a conversation. The whole solitude lives in one syllable: mono-.
Examples
Her monologue moved the audience to tears.
He delivered a long monologue at the meeting.
Hamlet's famous monologue starts with "To be".
Related
logicdialoguebiologyprologueapology