Overlapping speech is best described as which phenomenon?

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

Answer: (A)

Overlapping speech is when two people speak at the same time. That simultaneous talk happens when both voices are produced during the same stretch of conversation, rather than one person finishing a thought before the other starts. This is different from interruptions, which involve one speaker cutting off another to take the floor, often in a forceful way. Prolonged silence is simply a lack of speaking, and backchanneling are listening cues like “uh-huh” that don’t contribute a new turn. So the best description of overlapping speech is simultaneous speech.