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friendly, informal conversation or an instance of this
at the corporate get-together we made the obligatory small talk with some people from the home office
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Recent Examples of small talk
That should’ve been that, but my Midwestern manners got the best of me, and my first question to the two-time Emmy winner, one-time Tony winner, and all-time comic great became nothing more than polite, near-rhetorical, small talk.
—
Ben Travers, IndieWire, 22 May 2025
Some colleges have taken it upon themselves to better prepare young workers for the professional world, like by offering classes to practice making small talk, or boot camps to build career-readiness skills.
—Jennifer Liu, CNBC, 21 May 2025
Prep topics beforehand, ask a lot of questions, do not fear small talk but don’t be afraid to go deeper quickly.
—Rustin Dodd, New York Times, 22 May 2025
The parents’ brief meeting when Ray — clearly allergic to small talk — comes to pick up Colin on his bike is endearingly awkward.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 18 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for small talk
Ben Travers, IndieWire, 22 May 2025
Some colleges have taken it upon themselves to better prepare young workers for the professional world, like by offering classes to practice making small talk, or boot camps to build career-readiness skills.
—Jennifer Liu, CNBC, 21 May 2025
Prep topics beforehand, ask a lot of questions, do not fear small talk but don’t be afraid to go deeper quickly.
—Rustin Dodd, New York Times, 22 May 2025
The parents’ brief meeting when Ray — clearly allergic to small talk — comes to pick up Colin on his bike is endearingly awkward.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 18 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for small talk
Recent Examples of Synonyms for small talk
Noun
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The investigation has since expanded to include Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s Signal group chat that included members of his family.—
Ross O'Keefe,
The Washington Examiner,
21 June 2025
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During their chat, the conversation turned to some of their less savory SNL jokes, including pranks behind the scenes.—
Victoria Edel,
People.com,
20 June 2025
Noun
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Yet Trump, whose administration had entered into talks with Iran aimed at reaching an agreement on the country's nuclear program, has backed the Israeli offensive and has openly contemplated joining the Israeli campaign through strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities.—
Tom O'Connor,
MSNBC Newsweek,
21 June 2025
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Share it consistently through talks, X posts or articles, backed by real results.—
Rolling Stone Culture Council,
Rolling Stone,
20 June 2025
Noun
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Based on all the chatter coming out of camp, Wilson already seems to be having a positive influence on the Giants.—
Kevin McCormick,
MSNBC Newsweek,
20 June 2025
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There was a lot of chatter about the government replenishing local government consumer subsidy funds after strong demand, which led to depletion in several cities.—
Brendan Ahern,
Forbes.com,
20 June 2025
Noun
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Each monthly box includes three recipe guides, skill lessons, a kitchen tool, a kitchen project, an apron patch, table talk cards, and a grocery list.—
Jessica Booth,
Parents,
16 Dec. 2024
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Almost everything about Thanksgiving, from travel to table talk about politics, has the potential to become fraught.—
Kendra Nordin Beato,
The Christian Science Monitor,
26 Nov. 2024
Cite this Entry
“Small talk.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/small%20talk. Accessed 30 Jun. 2025.
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