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conversation

[kon-ver-sey-shuhn]
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SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR conversation ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

informal interchange of thoughts, information, etc., by spoken words; oral communication between persons; talk; colloquy.
an instance of this.
association or social intercourse; intimate acquaintance.
criminal conversation.
the ability to talk socially with others: She writes well but has no conversation.
Obsolete.
  1. behavior or manner of living.
  2. close familiarity; intimate acquaintance, as from constant use or study.

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RELATED WORDS

comment, conference, remark, observation, exchange, communication, discussion, visit, hearing, consultation, speech, chat, gossip, questioning, debate, talk, confab, repartee, confabulation, intercourse

Nearby words

  1. convergently,
  2. converging lens,
  3. conversable,
  4. conversant,
  5. conversate,
  6. conversation chair,
  7. conversation piece,
  8. conversation pit,
  9. conversational,
  10. conversational implicature

Origin of conversation

1300–50; Middle English conversacio(u)n < Latin conversātiōn- (stem of conversātiō) society, intercourse, equivalent to conversāt(us) past participle of conversārī to associate with (see converse1) + -iōn- -ion
Related formspre·con·ver·sa·tion, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for conversation

British Dictionary definitions for conversation

conversation

noun

the interchange through speech of information, ideas, etc; spoken communication
make conversation to talk in an artificial way
Related formsRelated adjective: colloquial
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for conversation

conversation

n.

mid-14c., "living together, having dealings with others," also "manner of conducting oneself in the world;" from Old French conversation, from Latin conversationem (nominative conversatio) "act of living with," noun of action from past participle stem of conversari "to live with, keep company with," literally "turn about with," from Latin com- "with" (see com-) + vertare, frequentative of vertere (see versus).

Specific sense of "talk" is 1570s. Used as a synonym for "sexual intercourse" from at least 1511, hence criminal conversation, legal term for adultery from late 18c. Related: Conversationalist; conversationist.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Idioms and Phrases with conversation

conversation

In addition to the idiom beginning with conversation

  • conversation piece

also see:

  • make conversation
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.