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I am looking for a short and concise term (preferably one word) that can be used as a hypernym for essentially everything that contains (audio) speech (e.g. audiobooks, podcasts, recorded news bulletins, recorded performances of comedians,..).

Does such a term exist? I've thought about 'speech', but that seems to be more adequate for e.g. political speeches, and not so much for audio books and the like. But maybe I'm wrong.

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    I think you use the term: audio.
    – user13141
    Commented Nov 4, 2011 at 9:17
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    I think he's looking for a word like "audio" but which excludes things like music.
    – tenfour
    Commented Nov 4, 2011 at 10:52
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    Recorded speech seems perfect to me. I don't think you will find a single word that is better.
    – z7sg Ѫ
    Commented Nov 4, 2011 at 11:49
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    Music stores call it "spoken word".
    – Urbycoz
    Commented Nov 4, 2011 at 12:18

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Depending on context, you might be able to use recordings.

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  • But this also would include music and/or video.
    – Mark Beadles
    Commented May 17, 2012 at 11:55
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These would normally be refered to as media.

But if you wish to specify further, to exclude visual media such as videos, the word audio is probably the best available.

au·di·o (ôd-) n.

  1. The part of television or movie equipment that has to do with sound.

  2. The broadcasting, reception, or reproduction of sound.

  3. Audible sound.

  4. A sound signal: lost the audio during the broadcast.

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    Media can include silent video. I don't think there's a good umbrella term for what the OP's asking because the examples thon gives are rather different things. I don't really see why there should be an umbrella term.
    – Jez
    Commented Nov 4, 2011 at 10:50
  • -1 media: means and institutions for publishing and broadcasting information.
    – z7sg Ѫ
    Commented Nov 4, 2011 at 11:48
  • @z7sg I think strictly-speaking you are correct with your definition (after all- it comes from the word "medium"). But I would say that the word "media" has come to be used as a collective term for all electronic things such as mp3s and videos.
    – Urbycoz
    Commented Nov 4, 2011 at 12:07
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"spoken word" is the term used by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences.

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