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Glite Dictionary
to talk about the weather

to talk about the weather

6 1.0
To discuss small safe topics to start conversation and fill silence
  • phrasal verb
translation icon : hablar del tiempo
  • At the party, everyone started to talk about the weather to break the ice.
  • Let's talk about the weather
  • just talk about the weather

Examples

  • I mean, maybe they'll all just sit around and talk about the weather.

    Fiction book (1996)

  • During our lunch break, we often talk about the weather to fill the silence.

  • And, you know, there was some small talk about the weather and I was like, is this going to turn into a conversation?

  • You start out by talking about the weather.

    Short Circuit 2 (1988)

  • I would just talk about the weather and this and that, and she never said a word.

    Academic text (2011)

  • Once we could talk about the weather and be happy.

    Fiction book (1990)

  • Everybody talks about the weather, but nobody does anything about it.

    The Adventures of Mark Twain (1944)

  • He liked talking about the weather.

    Fiction book (1999)

  • It took a few minutes to reach the shore, and the governor continued to talk about the weather.

    Blog text (17)

  • Vaughn Rhomer and nephew Jack talked about the weather and the price of lettuce while they crossed the parking lot.

    Fiction book (1993)

Synonyms

to chat
vsto talk about the weather
  • Informal
269 1.0

To talk in a friendly, informal way about small everyday things

aims to ease interaction or fill awkward silences rather than inform
to talk of
vsto talk about the weather
127 2.5

Mention something in conversation

is more general and can refer to serious or important topics
to chat about
vsto talk about the weather
  • Informal
40 1.6

To talk in a friendly, casual way about a subject

is often used to ease social contact rather than give detailed information
to shoot the breeze
vsto talk about the weather
  • Informal
9 6.8

To chat in a relaxed informal way about unimportant things

is used specifically to ease social awkwardness or fill silences
to chitchat
vsto talk about the weather
  • Informal
7 3.0

To talk in a friendly, light way about unimportant things

serves to make social interaction easy or avoid silence
to bat the breeze
vsto talk about the weather
  • Informal
8.1

To talk in a relaxed, friendly way

is used to open or smooth social situations rather than discuss important matters
to jive about
vsto talk about the weather
  • Informal
8.5

To talk in a lively, informal way about things like music

is less about easing silence and more about lively casual exchange
schmoose
vsto talk about the weather
  • Informal
9.9

A friendly, informal talk about personal news

functions mainly to smooth social relations rather than spread gossip
to talmbout
vsto talk about the weather
  • Slang
9.9

To talk about something in informal speech

is broader and not limited to trivial or social easing topics

How Serious

debate
  • Formal
∞ 2.0
discussion
∞ 1.4
conversation
∞ 1.0
to chat
  • Informal
269 1.0
to talk about the weather
6 1.0

Surface Forms

talk about the weather infinitive
talked about the weather past
talked about the weather past participle
talking about the weather present participle
talks about the weather third person singular

Morphology

talk + about + the + weather

The literal meaning 'talk about the weather' is directly derivable from the constituents 'talk' + 'about' + 'weather'. The conventional pragmatic use—using weather discussion as trivial small talk to ease interaction—is a common, cross-linguistic communicative pattern, so a B1 learner who knows the words is likely to infer the intended meaning.

Etymology

The phrase talk about the weather comes from a simple idea: everyone notices the weather, so people talk about it as a safe, easy topic to start a conversation. That's why the expression now means 'to make small talk' or 'to fill an awkward silence'.