shoot the breeze

Idioms  

1. Also,. Talk idly, chat, as in They've been sitting on the porch for hours, just shooting the breeze, or The guys sit around the locker room, throwing the bull. The first of these slangy terms, alluding to talking into the wind, was first recorded in 1919. In the variant, first recorded in 1908, bull is a shortening of bullshit, and means “empty talk” or “lies.”

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

shoot the breeze

Pubs are gathering places for people to compete in trivia nights, watch soccer games on television or just shoot the breeze with neighbors they might disagree with, often with their dog in tow.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 25, 2026

Together, they shoot the breeze like Vladimir and Estragon - but rather than waiting for Godot, they're waiting for the next arena car park.

From BBC ● Apr. 13, 2025

‘Wolfs’ stars George Clooney and Brad Pitt shoot the breeze in a GQ interview, with Clooney taking aim at filmmakers Quentin Tarantino and David O. Russell.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 20, 2024

Catch him after practice and he’s happy to shoot the breeze with a smile on his face.

From Seattle Times ● Dec. 2, 2023

A better question: Did he really think I was going to pull up a chair and shoot the breeze about the good old days?

From "The Darkest Minds" by Alexandra Bracken

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