Good news: Your best friend asked you to be his best man. Bad news: You don’t know what to say in a best man speech. Don’t worry; we have a couple of tips for you!
Writing a best man speech requires a lot of planning, revising, and practicing. Read on to learn some best man speech examples and tips. Learn how long it should be and what to include in your address.
What Is a Best Man Speech?
A best man speech is a speech or toast given by the groom’s best man at the wedding. It usually comes first before the maid of honor’s speech.
The best man, sometimes known as the best person for gender neutrality, is the groom’s right hand throughout the wedding. He assists the groom from the planning process to the wedding day. The best man also organizes the groom’s bachelor party.
The best man is typically the groom’s most trusted buddy. It can be his brother, a childhood friend, or the man who knows him best.
A best man speech is supposed to tell a story about the groom and newlyweds. It is finished by raising a final toast to their future. This speech is an opportunity to publicly share how you met the groom and why you think the bride is perfect for him.
How Long Should a Speech Be for a Best Man?
Your speech should only last three to five minutes. The average person speaks around 150 words per minute. If you write 6000 words for a speech, you’ll take approximately 45 minutes to address the crowd. Yikes.
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Less is more, trust me. You can only write a maximum of 750 words for your best man speech. Aim for a short and witty speech. Don’t make it too deep and complex, or you’ll bore the audience.
Best Man Speech Outline
Every essay or speech, no matter the subject, has three essential parts: introduction, body, and conclusion. But what should each paragraph contain? I’ll break down each section for you.
Introduction
The introduction should grab the audience’s attention. Here are some introduction ideas you can try.
Share How You Met the Groom
If the groom is your friend, there is a huge chance you are his closest friend. Your introduction speech can be your favorite story of how you met. If it’s a family member, talk about childhood memories, like how he was an annoying brother.
Crack a Joke
You can make a decent speech for the happy couple without boring the wedding guests. Try telling a funny story about the groom, a wedding pun, or a knock-knock joke.
One tip to being hilarious in your introduction is to keep a straight face while telling the joke. It makes them think and pay attention to your toast.
Introduce a Recurring Theme
Aside from making wedding speech jokes, you may also introduce the theme of the wedding day to serve as a good foundation for your best man speech. You may also choose one of your own that reflects your relationship with the groom and the relationship of the fantastic couple.
A common theme can make your inspirational and funny speech more coherent. For example, you can say, “The special couple is proof that opposites attract.”
Read a Definition From a Dictionary
Not everyone agrees with this speech opener idea, but defining a word related to the wedding can catch people’s attention. For example, you can define “loyal” and then talk about the groom becoming a loyal brother to you and a loyal partner to the bride.
Read Something in a Different Language
If you want to involve international family members, practice reciting your speech in their native language. Hire a translator who can help you transform your sentence into a different language.
Body Paragraph
The body paragraph contains detailed stories and thoughts about you and the groom and the couple.
Talk About Your Relationship With the Groom
Include one to three stories about how you met the groom and some favorite memories. This will captivate everyone and leave a strong impression.
Talk About the New Spouse
Whether you’re close with the spouse or not, it’s essential to talk about them, too. Consider why you think this person is perfect for the groom and how they complement the groom. You may also share your favorite memories with the bride.
Talk About the Marriage
The third body paragraph discusses why their marriage is excellent. What would you say is the most important value that the couple practices in marriage? Why are you glad that the two people chose each other to marry?
Finish With Your Conclusion
The ending of a best man speech is usually a wish or toast for the couple. Give the guests something to do, such as stand up and raise their glasses to the happy couple. Top it off by saying, “May you love and laugh together forever.”
Best Man Speech Tips
Consider these tips when learning how to write a best man speech.
Plan Ahead
One of the most crucial wedding speech tips is to plan. Once you’ve been invited to become a groom’s man before the bachelor party, start collecting amazing stories and jokes you want to include.
Planning is more crucial if you’re creating a joint speech with another best man. Brainstorm ideas and bring the stories together into one excellent anecdote. Remember that a memorable speech has a narrative arc. So, make sure to keep it cohesive.
You might also be encouraged to attend other events that will lead you to lose sight of time. Plan to avoid the pressure when writing the best man speech.
Introduce Yourself With a Twist
The introduction is an essential part of the wedding speech structure. One of the most convenient speech openers is introducing yourself to all the guests. While the groom’s friends and family might already know you, other people during the evening event might not.
Most speeches usually start with a “Good evening,” followed by “I am [name], [groom’s name]’s best friend, brother, and best man.” But you can make your self-introduction more interesting using a joke. Here, I’ll show what I mean in an example.
“Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. You’re probably at the wrong party if you’re at this event and still don’t know me. I am [name], the best friend of the groom, [groom’s name].”
Express Gratitude
Another tip for writing a star-studded speech is to step on the dance floor and thank the spectacular people in the event for joining. Thank the couple’s parents for raising extraordinary children. Then, thank the groom for being a loyal friend for life.
You can also throw in a few laughs by thanking the groom for having excellent taste in a groom’s man. Or have a one-liner thanking the bartender. These speech icebreakers will keep everyone listening to your toast. Here’s a good example showing what I mean.
“I’d like to thank everyone for being here with us today. Many of you have traveled for hours to participate in the couple [couple’s name] becoming one.”
Talk About Your Relationship With the Groom
Aside from introducing yourself, mentioning an inspirational quote, and thanking everyone, writing a best man speech also requires you to discuss your relationship with the groom. Discuss how you met him, how long you have known each other, and other stories.
Don’t forget to link this section to the partner to make it more meaningful. For example, the groom might be clumsy and messy all the time. Share how the bride is the complete opposite because she is more organized and neat.
Be careful about sharing embarrassing stories and crude jokes with the audience. Not everyone wants to hear about that one incident from your boys’ night out. Make sure to balance all the funny stories with narratives about the groom being a wonderful person.
If you are hiring a speech writing service, tell the writer about these personal stories to keep the speech relevant.
Below is an example of how to talk about your relationship with the groom.
“When I first met [groom], the love of his life was his Playstation 4. He would bring it to his room like a girlfriend and spend hours playing Call of Duty. [Groom’s name] loved me so much that he was willing to share his love with me.”
Focus on the Couple’s Relationship
Do not talk about your friendship with the groom longer than the relationship of the wedding couple. If you were there when the two met, share a story. Explain how you realized his significant other was “The One” for him.
You could also share how unexpected events and challenges only made them stronger. Your friend probably told you he was going to marry this woman one week into the relationship, and you thought he was crazy.
Share how the couple is such caring people toward you. If you’re his brother, they have probably taken care of you as a kid. Here’s a great example with more context.
“I’ve always known what [groom’s name]’s idea of a perfect partner is. He wants a beautiful, ambitious, caring woman who brings out the man in him. [bride’s name] ticks all the boxes. She even exceeds all expectations.”
Ask a Question to Answer Throughout
One way to write a speech in twenty minutes or less is to ask a question you will answer throughout the toast. Explore what you want the guests to know about the groom at the wedding party.
As you dive deeper into asking questions, don’t forget to tell amusing stories and insert quotes that fit the newlywed couple. This will make the glorious event more memorable for everyone.
Keep Your Best Man Speech Short and Sweet
You don’t need to write a long, bloody speech to get a standing ovation from the audience. Chances are, you’ve already taken a couple of shots during the event, so it will be challenging to give the speech from memory.
The best man’s speech is usually first in terms of wedding speech order. So, you don’t have a lot of time to prepare. Keeping it concise also prevents people from being restless in the following few speeches.
A good best man speech is around three to five minutes long. You can load your phone with wedding speech notes to avoid forgetting important parts.
Rhyme-Master Flex
Rhyming your sentences will keep everyone in the room interested in your speech. It will make you sound more poetic and intelligent, too! Consider this example.
“[name of bride and groom], I appreciate the chance
To speak on your special day.
After watching your first dance,
‘Love is real’ is all I can say.”
Finish Your Best Man Speech With Congratulations
The best way to cap off your speech is by congratulating the couple. Congratulate them on their big day and offer a toast to a happy marriage that will last for years. Make it witty, personal, or quotable.
It can be a line about relationships and love. It can also be a quote about a lifetime of happiness. Below is an example of a concluding sentence that congratulates the couple.
“The real adventure together starts today. I wish both of you make the most of every moment as husband and wife. Everyone, please help me celebrate this event by raising your glasses to [groom and bride].”
Practice With an Audience
As with every other type of speech, practicing your best man speech before the wedding is crucial. First, read the address out loud to yourself. This strategy will help you correct clarity issues and make humorous quotes more humorous.
Once you’ve edited the speech, read it to a friend and ask for their feedback. Once you get good feedback from a small circle, you’ll come out comfortably knowing you have a fantastic speech.
Limit Your Drinks
Don’t embarrass yourself by slurring during your best man speech. You can take one or two shots to ease the anxiety, but drinking too much can embarrass the couple and the crowd.
What to Avoid When Making a Best Man Speech
Some common sense will keep you out of trouble when making a best man speech. Make sure to avoid these.
Making Too Many Jokes
Making the audience laugh is cool. But doing it at the expense of the couple isn’t. Don’t tell too many inside jokes that other people won’t understand.
Making the Speech About Yourself
Remember that this is not your day. Don’t focus the speech on yourself unless you are explaining how you met the groom and bride.
Cracking Dirty Jokes
A wedding isn’t about smutty sex jokes. For some people, it’s a sacred day that doesn’t require you to go into elaborate details of PG scenarios.
Offending the Bride
Avoid sexist jokes that will offend the bride and their family. Say nice things about her. And focus on her personality besides her appearance.
Talking About Exes
Couples don’t want to hear about each other’s exes on the best day of their lives. The speech should be about them so as not to make everyone uncomfortable.
Best Man Speech Quotes
Here is a great variety of best man quotes to include in your speech.
Well-known and Inspiring Best Man Speech Quotes You Can Use
If I were writing this speech, I’d use one of these popular quotes from literature and culture like this: “As Oscar Wilde once said…” and then continue with whatever quote I chose.
“What I say is that, if a man really likes potatoes, he must be a pretty decent sort of fellow.” -AA Milne
”When you find people who not only tolerate your quirks but celebrate them and say ‘me too!’ be sure to cherish them. These people are your tribe.” -Anonymous
“Who, being loved, is poor?” -Oscar Wilde
“The most precious possession that ever comes to a man in this world is a woman’s heart.” – Timothy Titcomb
“There is only one happiness in life: To love and be loved.” -George Sand
“Whatever our souls are made of, his and mine are the same.” -Emily Bronte
“The secret of a happy marriage is finding the right person. You know they’re right if you love to be with them all the time.” -Julia Child
“The best use of life is love. The best expression of love is time. The best time to love is now.” -Rick Warren
“There is no more lovely, friendly, and charming relationship, communion or company than a good marriage.” -Martin Luther
“You don’t marry the person you can live with—you marry the person you can’t live without.” -Unknown
Romantic Wedding Speech
“Love has nothing to do with what you are expecting to get—only with what you are expecting to give—which is everything.” -Katharine Hepburn
“You know you’re in love when you don’t want to fall asleep because reality is finally better than your dreams.” -Dr. Seuss
“In all the world, there is no heart for me like yours. In all the world, there is no love for you like mine.” -Maya Angelou
“To find someone who will love you for no reason, and to shower that person with reasons, that is the ultimate happiness.” -Robert Brault
“Love seems the swiftest but it is the slowest of all growths. No man or woman really knows what perfect love is until they have been married a quarter of a century.” -Mark Twain
Funny Best Man Speech Quotes
“Never go to bed on an argument. Stay up and fight.” -Phyllis Diller
“It’s a funny thing that when a man hasn’t anything on earth to worry about, he goes off and gets married.” -Robert Frost
“Marriage is not just spiritual communion. It is also remembering to take out the trash.” -Joyce Brothers
“I love being married. It’s so great to find that one special person you want to annoy for the rest of your life.” -Rita Rudner
computer with slow Internet service to see who they really are.” -Will Ferrell
“Getting married is like trading the adoration of many for the sarcasm of one.” -Mae West
“Women marry men hoping they will change. Men marry women hoping they will not. So each is inevitably disappointed.” -Albert Einstein
“Marriages are made in heaven. But so again, are thunder and lightning.” -Clint Eastwood
“Being a good husband is like being a stand-up comic. You need 10 years before you can call yourself a beginner.” -Jerry Seinfeld
A Best Man Speech Example
Below is a short example of a best man speech.
Ladies and gentlemen, I am [your name], [groom]’s best friend and best man. Before I start, I want to say no flash photography, please!
[Groom] is a family friend of mine, although I first met him in dance lessons during high school. I’m not going to tell you he’s a bad dancer on this special day, but he moves like he has two left feet. We instantly became best of friends.
[Groom] and I have been through a lot together, including partying, problems, holidays, and, most of all, his wedding. Today has been such an emotional day that even the cake is in tiers.
In all seriousness, though, I have never seen [groom] as happy as he was with his Nintendo until he met the true love of his life, [bride].
[Bride] and [groom] fit each other like gloves. [Bride] is neat and organized, while [groom] is chaos personified. [Groom] is forgetful, while [bride] remembers all the small details, even the fact that [groom] did not reply to him on June 6th, 2019, at 5:13 PM.
[Groom], I am proud of you. We all are. After dating for [number of years together], you’re finally tying the knot with [bride], the love of your life.
I ask everyone to join me in a toast to the bride and groom’s future. May you build a loving home, share a lifetime of happiness, and hold hands in the journey of life.
Give the Best Best Man Speech
I hope this guide reduces your worries about writing your best man speech. This toast should be an opportunity to share your fond memories with the groom and why he and his bride are perfect for each other.
Keep the best man speech short and focus on the couple. Don’t forget to revise the speech as needed and get feedback from your friends.