chin-wag

1 of 2

noun

ˈchin-ˌwag 

plural chin-wags

chiefly British, informal

: a friendly conversation : chat

"If I get 15 minutes—the kids are at school, everyone's brushed their teeth, they've eaten—I can sit with a coffee and call a girlfriend, and just have a chin-wag."

—Kate Winslet

chin-wag

2 of 2

verb

chin-wagged; chin-wagging; chin-wags

intransitive verb

chiefly British, informal

: to have a friendly conversation : chat

I called in to a neighbour, to see if he needed anything. … He told me he was fine for everything, and we chin-wagged for a while.

—Mark Boyle

They chin-wagged over wages, unions, benefits, working hours, …

—Bruce Clayton

Synonyms

Noun

• backchat
• cackle
• causerie
• chat
• chatter
• chin music
• chitchat
• confab
• confabulation
• gab
• gabfest
• gossip
• jangle
• jaw
• natter [chiefly British]
• palaver
• patter
• rap
• schmooze
• small talk
• table talk
• talk
• tête-à-tête

Examples of chin-wag in a Sentence

Noun

a tireless practitioner of chin-wag, she makes every other talker seem a little taciturn

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1879, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1869, in the meaning defined above